Unexpected
by HawaiianWahine
Summary: After a battle that leaves the pack tired and injured, Stiles begins to feel something unexpected for a certain Sourwolf. The only question is: are these feelings mutual? (prequel to 'From Another Angle' and 'Choices' but can be read independently)
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** So here's the prequel to my _From Another Angle _and _Choices_ fics. You don't have to read them since this could be a standalone story, but I would greatly appreciate it if you did. Please enjoy.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 1**

Stiles POV

Life in Beacon Hills has been simple and fun in the past year. Days are filled with school and Nights are filled with friends. Weekends were spent having video game and movie marathons with Scott and Isaac. Life couldn't be better. Oh who am I kidding? That is bullshit. Well not the part about the video game marathons, but those don't happen as often as I would wish. Ever since Scott got bit, life has been anything but good. It's filled with chaos and werewolves and pain and, well you get the idea.

Our pack is actually pretty small. We have Scott, Isaac, Cora, Peter, and, of course the "Almighty Alpha," Derek. Those are just the wolves, we also have a strong "Team Human." That consists of myself, Allison, and Lydia. We used to have Ethan, Aiden, and Danny, but Ethan and Aiden decided to leave to find their family and Danny joined them. They still check in every once in a while but it's only every few months.

It's bad enough that we have to deal with the occasional wolf pack coming through our territory, but now we have other crazy things. Seriously, in the past year we've dealt with faeries, vampires, and other crazy supernatural crap. I swear it's like we're living a real life episode of "Supernatural." Now we're dealing with Witches. These aren't just the usual boring witches; these are freaking powerful ones that kicked our asses the other night. There were four of them and they each had different skills. Individually they were weak, but once they got together we stood very little chance. We were lucky to leave with minimal damage, at least to the humans.

That little adventure is why I am finding myself sitting in front of my laptop on a Friday night researching witches. Most people are out having fun, watching movies, going to parties, and other things. But does Stiles get to have fun, of course not. He's too busy trying to keep his friends from getting massacred by a bunch of crazy witches.

I go to some of my usual web sources and see what I can find. The most important thing to determine is what kind of witches they were and how we would be able to defeat them. Once I get started I get into a groove, I just focus on what needs to be discovered and don't stop until I find it.

After a few hours, I believe I have finally figured everything out. I leaned back in my chair, feeling contempt with the work that I just did. The sound of someone clearing their throat behind me startled me and I found myself falling out of my chair and landing on the floor. I look over and who do I see? Mr. Sourwolf himself, Derek.

"Stiles, what have you found out?"

"Really? You couldn't start out with a 'Hey Stiles, how are you?' or 'Sorry for barging into your room and scaring the crap out of you?' Would that be so hard?"

Derek gives me one of his infamous glares, "Stiles, what did you figure out?"

"Ok, geez so demanding. You know how the witches seemed to have their own individual powers?" I waited for him to respond but I got nothing so I continued. "Well I believe that they are elemental witches. They each draw their power from one of the four major elements: fire, water, earth and air. Kind of like Avatar: The Last Airbender."

"What?" He looked at me confused.

"Seriously? You never watched it. It's awesome. There's this kid who can control the elements, like all of them. He has friends who are water benders, and earth benders, and fire benders. It's pretty freaking awesome. I guess we're going to have to marathon that one weekend."

"Stiles, the witches?"

"Oh right, Ok. When they are apart they can only focus on their one element and they can be defeated by their opposite. Water and fire are opposites. Earth and Air are opposites. The problem is, we don't know which element they each control. We wouldn't like to use fire against fire and give them additional power. We need to find a way to weaken them all so we can take them out without giving them the opportunity to strike at us."

"I'm assuming that you have found something out, or did you just ramble on for no reason?"

"First of all, my ramblings always have a reason behind them, well mostly. Secondly, of course I have an idea. You know how you guys are weakest during the new moon?" I look to see him nodding back at me. "That is because the power from the moon is similar to the power the moon has on the tides. There are times when the pull is its strongest and times when it's at its weakest. They are much like you guys. They are also influenced by the power of the moon."

"What does that mean?"

"It means, the witches are going to be nearly powerless during the new moon. They won't be able to gain enough strength to take us out. If we can figure out where they are hiding, we can strike during the next new moon and finally defeat them."

"The next full moon is in two days."

"I'm well aware of that."

"We're going to need some plan of attack. We can't go in unprepared like last time. Pack meeting tomorrow at 6, my place." With that he jumped out my window and into the night.

"Really? How hard is it to get at 'Thank you Stiles,' or 'Good Work Stiles, I am so glad we have you. How would we ever survive without you?' Instead of that I get a broody wolf jumping out my window without any good bye." I turned around and collapsed on my bed, hoping that I would get a good night's sleep. I have a feeling that the next few days are going to be interesting to say the least.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I'm back in school now so I can't promise I'll update as frequently as I usually do, but I will do my best. I hope you like this story. Please review it so I can see what I need to fix or if you have any ideas. I'm always open to criticism.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes:** Here's the new chapter. Thanks for taking the time to read this story. Oh and in my story Derek is the Alpha and Scott is a beta. My other fics had it that way so I'm working on continuity.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 2**

Stiles POV

The next afternoon after my stimulating conversation with the almighty broody one was spent hanging out with Scott, Isaac and Allison. Scott and Allison got back together after Junior year and have been together now for over a year. Junior year had definitely been an interesting one. Isaac and Allison had a quick little fling. It broke Scott's heart but he didn't do anything because he wanted Allison to be happy. Isaac and Allison were together for a couple months but they both realized that their relationship wasn't going to work. They were close but it didn't feel right. They went back to being friends and Allison got back together with Scott.

It was now the summer after Senior year. We are officially High School graduates and we are doing the very mature act of killing enemies in an epic game of COD.

After I killed Scott once again, he threw down the controller in as a sign of defeat. "I give up."

I turned to him with a smile on my face. "Are you finally admitting that my gaming skills are superior to yours?" I said jokingly, which earned me a shove from him.

"It's definitely not that. I'm just exhausted. It was my turn to patrol last night. I barely got 3 hours of sleep. We need to deal with these witches already. I miss my sleep."

"Don't worry. I have an idea that will help us defeat those witches once and for all."

"Really?" Isaac said raising his eyebrows at me. I swear it must be a requirement of being in Derek's pack that you must be able to communicate with only your eyebrows. "You have a plan?"

"I'm not an idiot. But I didn't say I had a plan, I said I have an idea. Which I will be discussing at the meeting later." I looked down at my watch and noticed that it was already 5:45. "Or now. Crap, it's already 5:45, we have to leave now before Derek kills us, and by us I mean me."

We headed out to my car and headed straight to Derek's loft, barging into it with 1 minute to spare. I looked around and noticed the sourwolf was nowhere in sight. I looked over at Cora eho was sitting down on the couch. "Where the hell is he?"

"He had to pick up the pizzas, or would you rather go yourself and pay for enough food to feed 5 wolves and 3 teenagers?"

"I think I'm good. Why doesn't he just get delivery? Or is the pizza man afraid of Derek because he barks at him and gets chased back to his car by the Sourwolf." I found myself laughing at my joke only to look around and see none of the wolves laughing. "Come on guys that was at least a bit funny. Why aren't you laughing?"

A sound behind me had me jumping. It was the sound of the big metal door to the loft opening. I turned to see Derek looking at me with one of him infamous glares. "Hey Derek, how's it going?" I slowly moved towards looking over at Scott trying to convey my betrayal towards his lack of a heads up.

"Stiles, next time you want to make a joke like that, you should probably just shut up. You're not as funny as you believe yourself to be."

"You don't know what you are talking about. I'm hysterical." He glared at me again, this time I knew better. "Ok, I'm shutting up now." He put the pizza on the table and we all began to eat.

After the food was gone Derek stood up and the official meeting began. "Scott, you were on patrol last night, what did you figure out?"

"They're still hanging out in the woods, but they keep moving their camp around."

"Where was the last place you saw them?"

"By the river."

"Ok, good work. Now we all know that these witches need to be dealt with quickly, we can't afford another attack. Stiles came up with an idea to help us defeat the witches." He looked over at me, signaling that it was my turn to speak. I stood up and told the pack everything, from the type of witches to the new moon.

Once I was done Derek got their attention once again. "Now as you guys should know, the new moon is tomorrow night. It will be the only time we'll have an advantage until the next new moon."

"But aren't we going to be at our weakest as well? How much of an advantage will we have?"

This time Derek looked at me to answer. "You guys won't have all your strength but you won't be completely powerless. You'll still have enhanced speed, strength, sight, etc. They will nearly powerless. They will still have some of their power but they won't be able to do anything that will be able to kill you, just injure you."

"Yea and injuries are so much fun." Scott commented which earned him a growl from Derek.

"Would you rather be injured or dead?" Scott's eyes dropped down in submission. "That's what I thought. Now we need to come with a plan for tomorrow. We need to trap them so that we will have our numbers in our favor."

The rest of the meeting consisted of coming up with a plan for tomorrow night. We are going to meet at 6 by the old Hale residence and break up in pairs, one human for every wolf. Allison is paired with Scott (obviously), Isaac and Lydia, Cora and Peter (Peter is still not at full strength so Cora's stuck with him), and I'm with Derek. The humans would be wielding their own respective weapons: Allison has the bow and arrow, Lydia has throwing knives, and I have a 9mm hand gun. We would split up and surround the witches are supposed to be in. We would slowly move in until we had them trapped. Hopefully by the end of tomorrow this whole witch situation would be over with.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note: **I hope you liked this chapter. It's the weekend so I should be able to write another chapter within the next few days. I hope you're liking this. Please review so I know what you're thinking. Thanks for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** Here's the next chapter. I hope you like it. Thanks for reading.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 3**

Stiles POV

For most individuals, the idea of facing a coven of crazy witches would have them pacing and freaking out. Me, I was lying on Scott's bed an hour before we were to meet the pack staring up at the ceiling. I felt completely calm. The thought of facing those witches had no effect on me. The sound of Scott reentering the room had me lifting my head up.

"Do you think it's weird that I am totally chill about what is about to happen?"

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"I mean that I'm not freaking out or worrying about it. I think that just tells you how crappy our lives have become. We're so used to being threatened and nearly being killed that it no longer fazes us."

"You definitely can say that our lives are interesting to say the least. But you should still be worried; I mean these witches kicked our asses the last time. Do you not remember being thrown back 40 feet into a tree?"

The memory sent a quick flash of pain to my back. "Trust me; it's hard to forget something like that. I know I should be worried but for some reason I'm not. I am worried about being stuck with Derek tonight. Why did I get stuck with him again?"

"Because I'm with Allison, Cora is the only one that can stand Peter, and Lydia didn't want anything to do with Derek."

"I'm pretty sure Derek could've handled Peter and why is Peter being paired up with a wolf anyways? Last time I checked, he still had claws."

"But he can't fully shift."

"Technicality." He looked over at me and I lay back down. "Fine. I guess I'm stuck with Derek. At least he can kick ass and I can't deny he has a nice ass."

"Dude, really?" He looked at me with his eyebrows raised (seriously what is it with the Hale pack and talking with their eyebrows?!). It's not a secret that I swing both ways, but Scott still doesn't like listening to me when I am talking about checking out guys.

"What?" I looked over at him with an innocent look on my face, he responded with one of his weak glares. "First off, your glares are weak compared to Derek's. Secondly, I can't really help but check it out. Have you seen the pants he wears? They don't leave much room for the imagination."

"Dude, do you have a crush on him?"

"What, no?!" I looked over at him. "I admit that he has the body of a god, but I could also say that about the rest of the pack. Do you see me wanting to jump on any of you guys?" He smirked at me, a memory creeped up on me. "Shut up. That was one night, and I was drunk. It just so happened that 'Drunk Stiles' felt like flirting with Isaac, sue me."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." I threw the nearest pillow at him which he dodged easily. He looked over at the clock, "We need to get going. We have to be at Derek's soon." With that we headed out into my jeep.

During the drive over I could feel the nerves beginning to build. I guess all that 'comfrotableness' from before was just a cover up for what I was really feeling, which was terrified. As the Hale house came in to view, I could see that the rest of the back was already there preparing for what was to happen. After parking we stepped out of the car and headed over to everyone else.

Derek called for attention. "Now that everyone is here, let's go over the plan quickly. Isaac and Lydia will go to the North, Peter and Cora will go to the South, Allison and Scott will go to the East, and Stiles and I will start from here. We are going to slowly move in and try to trap the witches. Humans will use their weapons to help from a distance, while the wolves move in for the attack. If something happens before we all reconvene, howl and we will meet up at that location. Everyone got that?"

I looked around to see everyone nodding. I headed over to Allison to get the two 9mm hand guns that I would be using. Having a father who was the sheriff did come in handy on nights like this. The rest of the pack headed out to their various starting points, leaving me with Derek. After a few minutes we began to move in towards the witches' last known whereabouts.

We had been walking for a while when the silence was getting too much for me, so I did what I do best: talk about random crap. "Do you know how many different types of witches there are? I mean these ones are elemental, but there are so many others. There are those that can speak to the dead, those that have connections to animals. I wonder if they would be able to connect to you guys. I mean I know you're not animals, but you guys do have a 'wolf' inside of you. Wouldn't that be cool?"

I was quickly cut off by a growl. "Stiles, will you please shut up? We're trying to sneak up on them, not wake them with your constant talking."

"I'm sorry, but I can't help it."

"I know you can't but it still is annoying. We don't want to draw attention. Last thing I want is for us to be the ones that get attacked first and then you get hurt or worse killed."

Wait, did he just say that? Is Derek Hale really worried about me? "I didn't think that you would be all that worried about me."

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean, you are the one that shoves me in to walls."

"That's different. I don't intend on doing any actual physical harm. You're an important part of the pack and I don't want to see anything happen to you."

"Thanks. I'll try and be quiet."

"That's all I ask."

The forest was quiet as we walked through it, but it seemed loud to me with my mind currently racing. I couldn't believe the mini conversation that I just had with Derek. When he was talking to me, his face was filled with concern. It actually made him look beautiful. I know I've thought he was hot before, but this was different. His features were softened by his concern. That was the first time he showed any emotion besides anger. I stopped myself mentally. Why am I thinking about Derek like that? I'm supposed to barely tolerate him.

I forced myself to focus on the task at hand, willing my mind to quiet. Derek abruptly stopped, placing his hand on my arm to signal me to stop as well. The look on his face was concentrated; he could see or hear something that I couldn't. Before I know what was happened, I heard a voice behind me. I turned to see one of the witches was there channeling whatever power she could to attack us. Just as she was sending the spell our way, Derek shoved me to the forest floor. He took the full impact of the spell and was flown back against a tree, falling to the ground unconscious and unmoving.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I hope you liked this chapter. Please review to let me know how I did. I love hearing what you have to say. Thanks for reading.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note**: Sorry for taking so long. I hope you like this chapter.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 4**

Stiles POV

I look over at the lifeless body of Derek, before turning to see the witch moving closer to me. I run to block Derek, checking to see if he's dead.

"Come on Derek, Come on." The panic of seeing him unconscious was stronger than I thought it would be.

An evil laughter caught my attention, I turned to see the witch standing 10 feet away from me. "Don't bother, I might not be as strong as I would like, but I still have some kick."

I pull out my gun and point it directly at her. "What did you do to him? Tell me now!"

"You're a tough one aren't you, but you're an idiot for consorting with those monsters." She moved closer ignoring the fact that I had my gun pointed directly at her chest. "We don't usually kill humans, but I think I may make an exception for you."

"Stay the fuck away from me." She kept moving closer. She didn't stop until she was only a few feet away.

"Did you know that we have a special talent?" I look at her with a blank expression, willing myself to remain calm. "We draw power from the elements, but we also sense the energy around us. The energy around you is so full of emotion. I can feel the fear coming from you, but also the determination. The fear isn't just about me, you're also afraid of what's going to happen to your friend. It's more than just a friendship there, something else is growing."

"Shut up, shut up now before I blow a hole in you."

"Wow that was rude. I thought we were having a lovely little chat." She shook her head, looking disappointed. She flicked her wrist and the gun flew from my grip. "Why do you feel the need to protect that creature? His kind is responsible for a lot of bloodshed. They don't care about humans, to them you are all pray."

"You're wrong."

She looks over at me, a smile playing at her lips. "I'm wrong? Well then, please enlighten me."

"Not all werewolves are like that, I mean sure some are, but not my pack."

"You're pack. You can't be pack. You're human."

"I can be pack. These 'creatures' are my friends. They protect this town from all the crazy things that come here. They don't kill innocent people, well Peter and Jackson did, but was different. They've changed now. They may be predators, but they're not killers. They would never hurt anyone."

"Oh, so they've never tried to hurt you?"

"Not recently. But that was back when they still lacked control. The person you just blew into that tree helped them to control themselves. He's their Alpha."

"Their Alpha? Well then it looks like I will have to kill him. That's too bad, he has such a cutie."

"Don't you dare, you said you don't kill humans, so if you kill him then you're going to have to get through me first."

"You really care for him don't you? Probably more than you're aware of."

"Shut up. I won't let you hurt him."

"I see you're not going to let me do what's necessary. Oh well, I guess I have no choice now but to kill you." I could feel the energy she was pulling, it wasn't much but I knew I wouldn't be able to take a hit from her. I didn't have any supernatural advantage.

I pulled the other gun I had from where it was hiding in the back of my pants. I pointed the gun at her chest and fired. Her face becomes frozen in a look of shock, until she falls to the ground, her life slowly leaving her body. I could feel the energy around me lighten.

I look behind me to see Derek still passed out against the tree. "Derek, come on you have to wake up." I placed my fingers on his neck and find that his pulse is weak but still there. "Derek, wake up. Wake up Now! You have to get up. I can't lose you." The feelings behind my words surprising me, I didn't realize that Derek could make me feel that way. I put my head to his chest and could hear his lungs working and his heart was starting to get stronger.

"Derek, can you hear me?" I looked at his face and saw his eyes start to flutter open. Relief washed over me.

He quickly sat up, but the movement was too quick for him and he looked as if he was dizzy. I quickly caught him. "Derek, you have to take it slow for a bit."

"What happened? Where's the witch?"

"Don't worry, she's dead." I motioned to her body behind me. "I told you I wasn't completely useless."

"Are you ok? Did she hurt you?"

"No, but she did knock you out for awhile."

"We need to meet up with everyone. We need to find out if they're ok and help them with the others." He quickly stood up, stumbling when he got dizzy again.

"You need to take it easy. You took quite a hit." I grabbed his arm and wrapped it around my shoulder, he made a noise in protest, but I quickly silenced him. "This is just until you're back 100%. Now can you tell where the pack is?"

"No, but we should probably head to where we said we would meet up. We might be able to find them there or track them to their location." With that we headed to meet the others.

As we got closer we could hear the fighting, Derek instantly released himself from my hold and ran ahead of me. I tried to keep pace with him, but let's face it I am severely lacking in speed in comparison to a werewolf.

I catch up at the clearing to see the rest of the pack fighting the remaining witches. I look around and see that one witch is already dead on the ground, the other two teaming up to take on the remainder of the pack. Isaac, Lydia and Cora were unconscious on the ground; I ran to them and found that they were still alive, just knocked unconscious.

I turned back to the fight and pulled my weapon out again. The witches were standing back to back, pulsating energy that was keeping the wolves at bay. As soon as one of them tried to penetrate it, they would be blown back. A plan jumped into my mind, running to Derek to tell him.

"Derek, I know how we can beat them."

"Yeah, well we could use any help right now."

"When I was facing the other witch I noticed that using the energy to knock you out took a lot of power from her. I was wondering why she would stop to talk when she could've just knocked me out and then went to kill you. It's because she's weak. Using that power took a toll on her. If we can make them use up their energy then we can attack."

"How exactly do you plan on getting them to use their power?"

"Have everyone attack in quick succession. They will have to keep using power to protect themselves, until they don't have any left."

"Sounds good to me." I could hear him whispering the plan to the wolves, which with their enhanced hearing could make out what he was saying. I ran over to Allison to inform her.

She aimed her bow at the witches, while I aimed my gun. Derek nodded and we all began to attack. The energy around the witches began to weaken, the look of terror appearing on their faces. The power they were able to harness on this night was weak as it was, but it couldn't handle this type of attack. Eventually they collapsed, all their power leaving them.

Derek moved forward, claws extended but his features human once again. "You should've never tried to hurt my pack." He raised his claws and brought them down upon the witches, quickly ending their lives. The pack celebrated and went to check on the others. I looked over at Derek, seeing the look of relief upon his features. The witch's words playing in my mind. Is it possible that I feel more towards him that I thought?

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** This is the longest chapter I wrote, and it's a way for me to apologize for taking so long. I hope you liked it. Please review and thanks for reading.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** Thanks to everyone that is reading this. I can't believe there are actually reading what I've written. Thank you. Here's the next chapter.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 5**

Stiles POV

After the fight, we all headed back to our respective homes. Scott jumps in with me after a long parting kiss with Allison. I support their relationship fully, but sometimes their affection can be freaking annoying. My mind floats back to what the witch said. She spoke about feelings that I was developing.

Scott's voice pulls me from my thoughts. "Dude, are you ok?"

I'm confused after being enveloped in my own thoughts. "What?"

"Are you ok? You've been quiet for the past 10 minutes, that's the longest I've heard you go without talking. What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing." I'm not certain if this is something that Scott would be willing to listen too.

"Stiles, what is it? Come on, we've been bros since the beginning of time. I can handle anything you have to say. What is it?"

I looked at Scott and knew that he was right. I just hoped that he would not freak out about it. "It's just something one of the witches said to me."

"How bad could it be?"

"It's not bad, it's just confusing. Do you mind if we go back to my place and talk about it there? This conversation might take longer than our drive to your place."

"Sure, I don't mind chilling at your place. Just let me text my mom to let her know that I'm spending the night with you." With that I turned my attention back to the road and headed straight to my house. As soon as we arrived Scott headed up to my room while I grabbed some snacks in the kitchen.

I didn't know what I was going to say to Scott. How do I tell him that the witch said and the thoughts that are currently coursing through my mind? I never thought about mine and Derek's relationship, other than acceting him asmy alpha.

"Stiles, come on up already." I hear Scott's voice from upstairs. I grab a package of oreos and some chips and head upstairs. I find Scott sitting on my computer chair, leaving the bed for me to sit on. There was still silence between us for a few minutes, until Scott finally spoke up. "Dude, I thought you wanted me to come to talk about what's on your mind? We can't exactly do that if you don't actually do any talking."

"I will say something, I just don't know how to start."

"Why don't you start by telling me what happened between you, Derek and the witch."

"Ok, sure. We can start there. We were hit off-guard by one of the witches. Well actually Derek sensed her at the last minute, shoving me out of the way of her blast and taking the hit for me. It knocked him out cold."

"Dang, that doesn't sound good. What happened after?"

"She started talking to me. She was wondering why I was protecting Derek. She kept calling you guys monsters and murders-"

Scott cut me off, "What?! Why do people keep thinking that about us? I haven't killed anyone, neither has Isaac or Cora. We're not monsters. Sure we're predators but we're not killers!"

"Scott," I yelled getting his attention, "I'm aware of that. Do you really think I would let her get away with saying something like that? I told her pretty much the same thing."

"Ok, sorry for interrupting. Please continue."

"So after that, she kept wondering why I was so protective of Derek. She then said she could sense the energy around her and she could feel something between us."

"What was she talking about?"

"She said there was more than a friendship growing between us."

Scott starts laughing, and I look at him confused. "Dude, is she crazy? Nevermind I know the answer to that, but does she seriously think there is something between you two?"

I look over at him and don't respond. To be honest, I didn't know how to respond.

"Why are you being so quiet? Wait, is there something going on between you two?"

"No, I mean, I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? Just yesterday you were saying that you didn't have a crush on him, now you just instantly decided to change your mind?"

"No that's not what it is." I put my head in my hands unable to put words to my thoughts.

"What is it?"

"I mean, I've always been attractive to him, but that's because he's hot, everyone is attracted to him. But something happened tonight." I stood up and needed to pace the room. "When we were walking towards the meeting place, Derek was telling me that he cared about me and was worried that something might happen to me. I never knew that he actually cared at me at all. I just thought I was the annoying human in your pack. I didn't think he cared at all."

"Of course he cares. You are pack."

"Well I'm the human in the pack. I might be considered pack by everyone but I never knew if he thought that I was pack or not." I continued my pacing, the movement helping me to focus my mind. "Then when the witch attacked, he shoved me out of the way. That blast was directed straight at me and he took it for me. He got thrown into a tree and knocked out for me." I stopped to breathe and clear my thoughts.

"So I'm assuming we're at the part when the witch starts talking."

"Well yea, I already told you what she said so I'm not going to repeat myself. So after I killed her I ran over to Derek to see if he was ok. Seeing his unconscious body and hearing his weak pulse was terrifying for me. I needed him to wake up. I was terrified that I was going to lose him."

"Well that would be normal. You'd be worried if it was me lying there unconscious."

"Well yeah, but this was different. My heart was breaking seeing him like that. I have no idea what is happening to me. There is something in my mind that is drawing me to Derek. I don't know what it is." I sat back on my bed putting my head in my hands again.

I felt Scott stand up and sit next to me. "Stiles, tell me something. If Derek was to walk in here right now, what would you do?"

"I don't know. I want to get to know him better though. I feel like I don't know him at all and I want to be the one that he opens up to." I stopped myself when I heard the words that escaped my mouth. "Did I really just say that?"

"Yeah you did. I think you actually know what's going on. You're starting to develop feelings for him and you seem to be afraid of what will happen because of those feelings."

"Aw man, do you really think that I'm starting to feel something for him. I mean he's not exactly who I was expecting to have a relationship with. He always seemed out of my league. I don't expect him to want me at all. I mean I'm pretty sure he's straight. If you look at his relationship history, actually I don't know much of his relationship history but I do know that he's at least dated two women, and they were psycho."

"You never know, but what are you planning to do?"

"Ignore these feelings until they go away. I had feelings for Lydia all those years and those feelings are now gone."

"But you were in love with her for 10 years."

"But I was trying to be in a relationship with her during that time. This time I'm going to ignore those feelings so it should go away quicker."

"Stiles are you sure that is what you want?"

"I don't know, but I have to try something." I knew that these feelings came up unexpectantly, but I can't deny that they are there. They may have been there the whole time and I was just unaware of it. There is one thing I do need to do, try to keep these feelings to myself as much as possible.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Thanks for reading. I don't know when I will have time to write but I will try to post every few days. Please review.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note:** Sorry this took a while. I'm ridiculously busy with school, but here's the next chapter. Thanks for reading. Enjoy.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 6**

Stiles POV

The next morning, Operation: Avoid Derek like the Plague is in full effect. It was summer so it seemed like it wouldn't be that hard. I just had to avoid hanging with the pack when they were hanging at the loft, though that would require me being creative with my excuses. I couldn't exactly say that I had a lot of homework.

It's not that I didn't want to hang out with everyone; it was just if I hung out with them there was a chance that I would run into Derek. I was always making up excuses and I felt as if they were starting to be see-through. Eventually the pack would figure out that I am avoiding them and think that it was their fault.

I had to avoid Derek so that I could sort out these feelings. All I needed was to run into him and be awkward and start rambling and freak out and…let's just say it is downhill from there. I know I said that I wanted to ignore these feelings, but it's hard to do that when I don't even know what these feelings are. Being in Derek's constant presence won't exactly help clear up my mind.

Although I didn't want anyone else to know, I caved after a couple of days and told Isaac to come to my house. I knew that I would have to tell him because he would probably be the first one to confront me about avoiding everyone. In the pack, Isaac was the one I was closest to (besides Scott). To say his response was surprising was an understatement.

Right after I told him what happened the night of the witch-fight, he stayed quiet for a few seconds. Then finally said, "I can see that."

My jaw dropped, "What? What can you see?"

"You two would be good together. You keep Derek in place. You're not a beta so you don't have to immediately listen to what he has to say. You call him out when you think he's been stupid. You balance him out."

"That doesn't mean we should be together. Besides, I'm pretty sure he's straight or do you not remember his relationship history? I'm pretty sure the two psychotic ex-girlfriends are proof enough that he prefers women. He is definitely on the 'boobs are awesome' team, not exactly holding a membership to the 'we love cocks' club."

Isaac looks away before speaking, "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

I stare at him, mouth dropping open. "WHAT?!" I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Well, he's never actually said which he prefers. We only know of two of his relationships, and I doubt those are the only two he's had. I mean he's 24, I'm pretty sure he's been with more than two people." He paused there, looking over to the side, obviously thinking over something. "Plus I've found lube in his bathroom and I'm pretty sure you don't use that when you're with women."

I kept staring at him. My brain was freaking out. If what Isaac is saying is true, then that would mean that he was Bi like me. But I'm not sure if Isaac is 100% certain of what he has seen.

"Ok Ok Ok. Let me get this straight. Derek Hale, the 'Big Bad Alpha' owns a bottle of lube. He has it in his bathroom. Is it used? I mean, is all of it there, or is it like knew or is barely used-"

"Oh, it's been used. At least half of it is gone."

Holy crap, my mind is currently going into overdrive. I mean I know I started to think that Derek was Bi, but what he said has me almost certain of it.

"So, he owns a bottle of lube. We only know of him being with women, but the rest of his love life is secret. Do you think that he might be Bi?"

"I'm guessing that he is. I'm not certain though, but I would think that is the case."

I was freaking out and all of a sudden my mouth would not stop moving. "Why the hell would you tell me that? I mean I was perfectly fine thinking that he was straight and I would have no chance with him. I mean not that I have a chance with him now. Have you seen him? He's like a 12 on a scale from 1 to 10 and I can pass for a 7 on a good day. What am I saying? I don't care what he is. I can't have these feelings for him. He's an annoying, emotionally constipated, grumpy pain in the ass. His special skills are growling and threatening to rip people's throats out with his teeth. Who cares that he cares about the pack? Who cares that he's willing to die for his pack? Who cares that he's 200 lbs. of pure muscle? Who cares if he has beautiful green eyes? He's an asshole and I have zero chance with him." I stopped needing to catch my breath.

Isaac sat there staring at me. My rant scaring him. Scott's stands up to face me. I completely forgot that he was in the room. "Are you done with your little rant?" I nod at him, still out of breath. "Good. First of all, you're not a 7, you're a solid 8." I punched him in the arm, smiling at him, thankful for him lightening the mood. "Secondly, did you hear half of the things you just said?"

"To be honest, my mouth was working on its own accord throughout that speech. I don't actually remember everything that I said, but I'm pretty sure I said that Derek would never be interested in me and that he's a pain in the ass. Both of which are completely factual statements." 

"You did say those things, but you also said a crap load of good aspects of him. I'm pretty sure that you just did a rant that proved that you have feelings, even if you were hoping that it would state the opposite." Scott says, and I don't know if I like what he's saying.

"Aw, crap. What am I supposed to do? I can't feel like this. There's no chance that anything is going to happen and, even if it did, it wouldn't work. We don't get along half the time. Plus, what if something happened between the two of us, the pack would be torn apart."

"Those are a lot of 'what if' statements. You never know what is going to happen. It might actually work out. Who's to say you guys don't end up married and mated?" Isaac says.

"He's right. You don't know what is going to happen. If you two do get together, it might be one of the best things to happen to you or it ends horribly. The only way you'll find out is to act upon it."

"You know, you're supposed to be slapping me across the back of my head telling me that I'm being ridiculous. Not pushing me and him together."

"I'm more than willing to slap you, but I'm here to help you talk things out."

"I understand what you are saying, but I don't think I want to take that risk. I like how the pack is right now. We have finally got past all that drama and we're starting to work well together. I don't want to throw any grenades into the mix." I sit down on my bed and put my head in my hands.

Isaac moves to sit next to me, putting a hand on my back. "If that is what you think is best, then we're not going to pressure you into anything. I still believe that you should talk to Derek about this, but I'll respect your wishes."

"What are you going to do?" Scott asks, looking over at me from my computer chair.

"I'm going to keep trying to avoid him and the rest of the pack. At least until I can hide my feelings."

"We'll try to keep them from prying," Scott says, "but eventually they're going to figure out that something is wrong. They're going to come looking for answers."

"All I need is a few days. Just tell them that I'm not feeling well or that I'm busy or that I'm hanging out with my Dad."

"You want us to lie," Isaac says, "to a pack of werewolves. You do realize we can tell when someone isn't telling the truth."

"Well you don't have to give full lies. I mean don't say I feel sick, say that I'm not feeling well enough to come out, which I'm not, at least emotionally. I do want to spend more time with my father. Plus I really do need to clean this house. With all the werewolf stuff going on, this house is completely unorganized."

"Ok, I guess we can try half-truths."

"Thanks, it's not forever. Just until I can get this all under control."

With that they left, leaving me to go over this whole conversation. I was hoping that Isaac would help me realize that these feelings are ridiculous. I mean he is living with Derek. He would no best what a pain Derek can be. Instead of squashing those thoughts, he supported them. Why is it that I am the only one that realizes that this whole thing is ridiculous. I can't act on any of this. Operation: Avoid Derek will remain in effect until whatever this is gets squashed like a bug.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note: **So there's another chapter. Sorry it took so long. I might be able to squeeze another chapter out tomorrow or maybe tonight. I'm in a writing mood. Please let me know what you think.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:** I don't know where this is coming from, but I have all this inspiration to write. I have to get all these ideas out now while I have them. Got a little bit of some Stilinski family love in this one. Hope you like it.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 7**

Stiles POV

Its day 8 of OAD (Operation: Avoid Derek) and so far so good. I was lucky to find out that my Dad had the night shift his week, which meant I got the chance to hang out with him throughout most of the day. Plus I could use that as an excuse as to why I wasn't hanging out with the pack.

I don't think the pack knows that anything is up, but it doesn't hurt that I have two people on the inside to squash any questions that the rest of the pack might have about to why I am missing. Scott has already told me that Allison is starting to get suspicious, but that's because Scott isn't telling her what is going on and he usually tells her everything. I love Allison, but if he tells her then she'll tell Lydia and Lydia will tell Cora and then Cora will tell Derek and then I'll actually have to deal with him. I'm just not ready for it.

On the days that my Dad isn't home, I spend it getting caught up on my research. It doesn't hurt to get a strong understanding on everything that goes bump in the night. I know that most of the crap that's on the internet is a bunch of crap, but there is still viable information that can be found. You just have to know how to find it. Whenever the pack asks why I'm busy, I have a legit reason for my absence.

Day 9 rolls around and I'm hanging around with my Dad. It was a nice day, but I was sitting with him at home watching a baseball game. It wasn't the Mets, but it was still a good game.

During one of the commercial breaks, he turns the TV on mute and turns to me. "Ok, what is going on?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's a beautiful day outside. You should be out with your friends. Why are you sitting inside with me? What is going on?"

"Why can't I hang out with my Dad? I want to spend some quality time with you. We never get to do this."

"Every time I'm home, you're sitting down here with me. You've never done that before. So either you're affections have grown exponentially or there's something up, and I highly doubt the first option."

My Dad wasn't an idiot. I got my intelligence and analytical mind from him. He didn't get elected Sheriff because he looked good in the uniform. I learned all my research skills from him. I figured he would eventually realize something was going on, but I was hoping it would take him longer to realize.

"Ok, there is something going on, but before I tell you anything about that, there is something I'm going to have to tell you."

"Ok, hit me with it."

"I'm not actually what you would consider straight. But I'm not gay either. I'm bi. I mean I know you probably won't believe me because you told me that I wasn't gay when I tried to tell you outside Jungle, but I'm serious. I mean, I do think girls are beautiful and awesome, but I feel the same way towards guys. I don't really have a preference either way. Are you ok with this? I mean I love you and I hope you still love me. I mean I know this is probably something that you won't like, but it's who I am. To quote Lady Gaga 'I was born this way,' which since I just quoted Lady Gaga should be a sign that I actually am gay."

"Stiles will you please just shut up," my dad yelled to end my ramble.

"Sorry, I ramble when I get nervous."

"I'm well aware of that. I have been your father for 18 years now." He takes a deep breath and then continues. "I don't care that you're gay or bi or whatever. I'm sorry that you think that I would be upset about you telling me that you were gay. When you told me that one night, I didn't believe you because I thought you were just trying to get out of trouble. And for you to think that I wouldn't love you because of this, then you aren't as smart as I thought you were. Just because you like guys doesn't mean that you're any less of a person in my mind. You're still my son."

"Why do I feel like we're in a corny episode of some sitcom?" a small laugh escaping my lips. "But thanks Dad. I'm glad you're not upset."

"No problem. Now what was it that is actually going on? I'm assuming this has something to do with a guy, especially since you just told me that you were into guys."

"Well it does." I took a deep breath before beginning. "I've been hanging out with you all week because I'm trying to avoid this guy I like. Nothing can happen between us because it would tear our group of friends apart if it went wrong. I'm avoiding him until I can get those feelings under control."

"How do you know that something is going to go wrong?"

"Seriously?! Why does everyone keep asking me that? I don't know, ok. It might work out and we live happily ever after or we have a horrible break up and it becomes incredibly awkward. We've just started to build a better friendship. I don't want to ruin that."

"I understand what you're saying. If you don't feel comfortable starting a relationship, then don't."

"Thank you for understanding."

"But I think that you should keep building your friendship. Maybe you do need to take a couple more days away, but you can't avoid him forever. You said that you don't want to tear your group of friends apart, but you avoiding them might just do that. Go back and work on your friendship first. Maybe after you get to know each other better, you'll find out if there really is a chance for a relationship."

Somehow my dad always knows just the right thing to say. "Thanks Dad."

"No problem, now let's get back to watching the game."

"If you don't mind, I think I'm going to go up to my room."

"No problem."

I left him and went to my room to think. It was nice to hear from my dad. He didn't know who I was talking about so he was able to give an objective opinion. I like his idea to take a few days and begin to build a friendship with Derek. I think that is a possibility. Maybe I can take these feelings and get close to him in a friendship way rather than an affectionate one.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Part of me feels like this fic is going to end soon, but the other feels like I have a lot that I can write about. I won't know until I write. I usually just have an idea of where I want to go, but I don't know exactly how long it will take for me to get there. Please review so I know what you think. Thanks for reading. If you're reading this then I love you, especially since you are actually reading what I am putting in my Author's note.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note:** Here's the next chapter. I hope you like it.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 8**

Stiles POV

Day 12 of OAD has arrived and I believe that it is time for me to end it. I think I have a handle on my feelings. I know that I won't know for sure until I see Derek again, but now I can stop actively avoiding the pack.

As if Derek has some creepy mind reading Alpha power, I get a text from him.

**Derek: **_Pack meeting. My House 2pm._

I reply instantly. _I'll be there_.

**Derek: **_You're coming? I thought you were busy._

**Me:** _I was busy. Emphasis on was._

**Derek:** _K, see you then_.

I stare at my phone for a second thinking about the fact that I was going to face him for the first time in almost two weeks. I know that I felt comfortable with the idea, but I'm still nervous.

"So are you coming to the meeting or what?" Scott's voice came from behind me. I jumped and fell face first on my floor. He immediately started howling with laughter.

"Shut up, asshole." I say getting up off the floor. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Well I was coming over to hang out and then I got the text from Derek. So are you going to come?"

"Yea, I am."

His face breaks out in a smile. "So you've finally decided to put a stop to, what did you call it, 'Operation Avoid Derek like the plague?"

"Yup."

"Good because I'm pretty sure Allison was about to shoot me with an arrow because she felt like I was hiding something from her." He moved to sit at my computer desk, doing something on his phone. "So what have you decided to do? You going to keep ignoring your feelings?"

"I'm not going to completely ignore my feelings, just adjust them."

"Adjust?"

"Yea, adjust. I'm going to try to take them and turn them into a friendship. Maybe if Derek and I become friends, my feelings will turn from romantic to bromantic."

"Did you just make up a word?"

"Why not? We have bromance, why can't I say bromantic?"

Isaac's voice pops up out of nowhere, scaring the crap out of me. "Because bromantic sounds stupid."

I turn to see him climbing through my window. "What the hell is with you two? Why must you come in through my window? Is there some rule in the werewolf handbook that states that you are not permitted to use doors? Or is it that you need me to install a doggie door for you."

"Shut up." Scott glares at me. "Windows are just easier and it's fun to scare the crap out of you."

"Whatever." With that the conversation ends and an epic tournament of Mario Cart begins.

I know Mario Cart isn't the most "Manly Man" video game, but have you ever played it? It is fricken addicting. If you play it enough, you get all the crazy levels and tracks, plus a bunch of different tools you can use to take out your opponents. Our games get pretty heated. It has gotten to the point where I have 8 controllers in my room, just in case one of them snaps it in half out of frustration. I swear I need to invest in a "Buy a new controller due to angry werewolf" jar, in which they put a dollar in it every time they play a game in my room. It's a lot easier than the "you break it, you buy it" rule, we can't exactly afford to buy a new controller every week.

1:30 eventually came around and it was time for us to leave for Derek's place.

"You ready to head over there?" Scott asked.

"Yea, I can't avoid him forever. It's already been 12 days. I'm surprised he hasn't shown up at my window telling me I have to do something for him."

"Ok, if you're sure."

"Shut Up and let's go." I walk past him and head out to my jeep. No matter what anybody says, she is a beauty. I love her no matter how many dents she has.

I feel myself tensing as we get closer to his place. Not in worry, but anticipation. This would be the first time seeing him. I felt like it has been too long. Aw, crap. I missed the guy. Does that mean that I won't be able to control myself? Maybe I shouldn't have spent so long away. I wonder if he's going to be clean shaven or if he hasn't shaved in a few days. I like him with a bit of stubble. Clean shaven makes him look like a teenager, a really buff teenager, but still. He's probably going to be in those tight jeans and a Henley, which will of course hug him just right. Damn, why is he so freaking hot? Shit! I need to stop thinking about this. I need to get rid of all of this. I can't be thinking that.

"Stiles, what are you thinking about?" I look at Scott and he has a semi-disgusted look on his face.

"Nothing much, why?"

"You smell like lust and arousal. It's kinda overwhelming." Well that explained the disgusted face. "Wait! Were you thinking about Derek?"

"No. Of course I wasn't." I knew that it was a weak lie, even I could hear it in my voice.

"Maybe you should spend another day away."

"No, I can handle this. I have to be able to handle this." I took a deep breath and calmed myself.

When we arrived at the Hale house everyone but Derek was outside.

"Stiles!" Cora ran right for me. "Where have you been?"

"I've been busy. Where's Derek?"

"Right here." I turn to see him walking up behind me. He was wearing those jeans but instead of a Henley he was wearing a tank that hugged his body just right. His eyes captured me. Aw, crap. I'm doomed.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I swear the next chapter will have a lot of Stiles and Derek interaction. I know it's been a while since they last interacted and I'm sorry, but I swear I will make it up to you. I might be able to get the next chapter up within the next few hours if I really put my mind to it. I swear I will try. Please Review.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:** Apparently if you really focus and are properly motivated, you can crank out a chapter in a short amount of time. Here's the next chapter. Lots of Stiles and Derek interaction. Thanks for reading.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 9**

Stiles POV

Scott was right. I should've waited a few more days. I couldn't help but stare at Derek. He just had to wear an outfit that hugged him in just the right ways. I mean I know that he wore those same clothes all the time before, but now I was actually aware of how perfect it was on him. It took Scott clearing his throat to pull me out of my zoned state.

"Where have you been?" And there was Derek's annoyed voice, that was definitely a way to snap me out of my current state.

"Hanging with my Dad and doing some work. Why do you care? I'm not one of your betas." I was hoping that if I was snarky I would be able to disguise my nerves.

"I don't care if you're not a beta; you're still a part of my pack. As Alpha, it's my responsibility to make sure you are ok and not out there doing something stupid." He was being his usual jerk self, but there was something about how he was saying that. It may be because I'm a lot more attentive to what he is saying, but it felt as if he barely remembered to attach the 'do something stupid' part. Like he had to add that in. I'm sure that it's just my imagination, there's no way.

"Sorry, I'll be sure to keep you better informed next time." Of course that was sarcastic, do you really expect anything else from me?

"That's all I ask." Wow, I think my sarcasm has now become contagious. "Now, that we've got that out of the way, we actually have something to talk about. I just got word from one of the packs in Oregon that there is a pack that has been challenging packs for their territory. They have slowly been working their way south towards us. They've taken out two packs already. I'm not sure if they will make it here, but I think it might be smart to start to set up patrols just in case."

"Really?" Scott groaned. "I hate patrolling, I never get to sleep and all I do is run around for hours and hours."

"Would you rather get sleep or get all of us killed?" Derek says raising his eyebrows at Scott, who starts to look ashamed of what he has said. "Now is there anyone else that has something to say?"

I raise my hand like a ridiculous school child. "Yea, what the hell?! Why don't we ever get breaks? I mean I get that we live in 'Beacon' Hills, but do we really need to be a _beacon_ for everything supernatural. Can't they just give us a break for once? I mean how hard is to ask for a month off or even two?!"

Derek looked over to me, apparently shocked that I would have a reaction like that. To be honest I don't understand why, it's not like I haven't said something like that before. "Ok, thanks for that little whatever Stiles." He shook his head and went back to business. "Regardless of what you've both said, we have to deal with the possibility of a threat. We will each have different tasks. Scott, Isaac, Peter, Cora, and I will run patrols in rotation. Allison, I need you to tell your father about this threat. Also try to use whatever connections you have to see if you can keep track of the pack's whereabouts. Lydia, you will be helping Allison do the necessary 'human' preparations. Stiles,"

"Let me guess, research the pack and the packs in the areas to figure out what I can about them?"

He glared at me, crossing his arms across his body (which by the way only accentuated the fact that he was unimaginably ripped). "Exactly."

"Glad I know my place in the pack." I mumbled.

Everyone grumbled about the new tasks but didn't act upon their frustrations. The rest of the meeting went over pretty smoothly, just setting up schedules and our next meeting.

Throughout the meeting I decided to start my plan to become friends with Derek. Hopefully I can turn these feelings I have into friendly feelings. Maybe I should start by asking him if we could research together and try to see if we could have a conversation with a minimal amount of insults and injuries. Hopefully we can find something that we have in common and actually become friends…or he shuts me down and throws me across the clearing. Hopefully he chooses the first option.

The meeting ended and Scott walked up to me. "You ready to go?"

"Um, would you and Isaac mind jumping in with someone else? I gotta talk to Derek about something?" I saw Derek turn towards me when I said that. I tried to keep from staring back at him.

I looked over at Scott who looked flabbergasted, hahaha how can you not laugh at that word, "Are you sure about that?"

"Yea, I'm sure. I'll meet up with you later tonight." With that he turned and walked away. I took a deep breath and walked over to Derek, working to keep my heart rate under control.

Derek walked over to meet me. "You have something you want to talk to me about?"

I instantly felt nervous speaking with him. What is with me? I mean I'm acting like a middle school girl with a crush. "Umm, yeah. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind coming over later to help me with the research."

"You've never needed help before and you're the best researcher I've ever met."

"Aww, Derek, I didn't realize you thought that. I'm flattered." I couldn't believe he actually gave me a compliment. Maybe he is warming up to me.

"Well there really isn't anyone to compare you with." Well there went that idea. "Why do you want me to help?"

I had to come up with something fast. "Well, you said you have a connection up in Oregon that told you about the pack."

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Maybe you could talk to them and see what other information you can get. I'll try to cross reference the information you give me with other cases throughout the area. Maybe we can pick up a pattern?"

"That sounds good to me. I'll call the Alpha after we're done here and I'll come by your house later." I started to walk away, "Stiles?" I turned back to face him. "What is the real reason for you avoiding the pack? I know that you wanted to spend time with your father, but you could've came around in the evenings when he was working."

"How do you know when he was working?" Derek looked down at the ground avoiding eye contact. Suddenly something clicked in my mind. "Were you watching my house?"

"I was only coming by to check on you. You weren't coming around and whenever I asked Scott or Isaac what you were doing there was the slightest hint of a lie in their voices. I was worried something had happened to you."

"We're back to you actually caring about me. I'm constantly shocked by that revelation."

"I've told you already. You're in my pack and that makes you my responsibility. Now it's your responsibility to tell me what was going on."

"I don't really want to talk about it." Which wasn't a complete lie. Part of me really wanted to tell Derek and hope that he also would declare his feelings for me but the other knows that the first part won't happen.

"Stiles," I turned to see him coming closer to me, "I want you to know, that even though you and I might not get along all the time, I do care. I'm sorry if you were avoiding me because of something I did."

"It's not that at all. I just needed a break from all the supernatural stuff." That wasn't really a lie. I always am in need of a break. I couldn't believe the way that this conversation has gone. He was actually talking to me about feelings and the fact that he cared about me. This wasn't good for my whole 'get over Derek and be friends' plan. I had to get away quick and let myself calm down if I was going to hang out with him later. "I have to go, but I'll see you tonight." I turned and walked to my Jeep and drove off. I have a feeling my plan may need more work than I initially thought.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Hope you liked it. If you think Derek is too lovey dovey or whatever trust me it's not what you think. I have a whole plan in my head. If only you could transfer thoughts into chapters without actually having to sit down and write them. I'll try update soon. Please review.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: **Here's the next chapter. Sorry it took a while. Hope you like it.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 10**

Stiles POV

When I got back from the pack meeting I immediately collapse on my bed. Derek was going to be over in a couple hours and I needed to make sure I was calm when he came. Was it a bad idea for me to ask Derek to come over? I mean I went from around him all the time to stopping cold turkey and now I'm going to be with him by myself for a few hours.

I need to get over that. I said that I wanted to be friends and I am going to do my best. We need to form some sort of connection. Derek especially needs this. He needs to be close to someone and maybe I can be that someone.

Ok, enough with all that emotional crap. I need to focus on this crazy pack that's moving towards us. Once again the supernatural world is taking a crap on us. It was bound to happen, whenever life goes back to normal something comes up.

I easily get into my Dad's database and look for signs that a pack was causing problems. There has been a lot of missing person cases, but not a lot of animal attacks.

I start to mumble to myself in hopes that thinking out loud will help. "If there was a rogue pack going around killing people, there would be a lot of animal attacks. This doesn't make sense."

"If a pack was killed, they wouldn't be known as an animal attack." I jump at the voice behind me. I turn to see Derek sitting on the window sill.

"Shit! Why do you always have to scare me?"

"It's not my fault you don't pay attention. Plus I enjoy seeing you jump."

"Asshole." I say turning away, but quickly remember what he said to scare me. "Wait what were you saying about lack of animal attacks?"

"They wouldn't report their death. A lot of times they just bury them in their own manner and report them as missing. Check for missing person reports."

"How do you know that?"

"I have been around werewolves for a bit longer than you. Burying pack members in the forest is a very common practice. Most packs do that. My family didn't because we were a family and we buried them in our own way. I'm assuming that is why you asked me to come over and help." His eyes were showing the sadness that comes whenever he talks about his family.

"Um…" his response caught me off guard. "Yea, but you can just help me try to find a pattern. You don't have to talk about your family. I'm not expecting you to."

"Thank you."

I nodded at him, turning back to my computer. "Here's what I've found. There has been 5 animal attacks in the past 2 months. That is more than usual, but it is summer so there may be more people in the woods. In that same time frame there have been 20 missing person cases, which is definitely a huge leap from the average. These people have gone missing from three areas north of us. Do you know of any packs in these areas?"

"I only know one pack, they are about 4 hours north of here. They're alpha is Xavier Smith. His family and my family were close. I knew him when I was younger. I haven't spoken to him in a while but I'll call and see if I can get in touch with him and see what he's heard."

"Ok, thanks. Now if what you're saying is right about the missing persons, then it does look like this pack is headed towards us. But we do need to get in touch with that pack. It is possible that the rogue pack was taken out and there is no more threat."

"I'll call them tomorrow. Is there anything else?"

"Why don't you help me go over some of these other files and see if you spot anything?"

"Why? Researching is your job."

"I don't give a crap if it's my job. There's a lot of crap I have to dig through and I don't know as much about werewolf politics as you do." Sometimes I forget what an asshole Derek could be. Why the hell do I like him again? He's just a jerk.

"You're right. I should help you since I know more about packs." And that wasn't expected.

"Did you just say that I was right? Can you say that again into my phone? I want proof that it happened."

"Shut up and let's get to work."

Over the next couple of hours we dig through file after file from nearly every city in Northern California. We found more and more missing person cases and a pattern was being formed. It did seem as if they were headed towards Beacon Hills.

Finally after a few hours we stop. I stand up and stretch. "Ok, I think we've done enough work for one night."

"Stiles, why were you avoiding the pack for the past few weeks?"

"I told you I wasn't avoiding the pack. I just wanted to spend some time with my dad and take it easy for a bit."

"I know you're lying to me. Tell me why."

"I'm not lying. That's the truth." I didn't actually lie to him. I wasn't trying to avoid the pack just him.

"Stiles, I can always tell when you're lying."

"How? Is that because you can hear my heartbeat? Because that's not a really reliable source.

"No, your heartbeat is steady, but I know you. I can tell when you're lying."

I looked at him shocked. "You know me? Now who's lying? You don't know any of us, not really."

"Of course I do."

"No you don't. You can't know us if we don't know you. You're always cut off from us. You don't let us get close to you. We're your pack. We care about you. I care about you. Why don't you realize it?"

"It's not that easy. Everyone that I get close to either gets hurt or hurts me. You're my pack. It's my job to care for you guys. You don't have to worry about me."

"This is so frustrating. Do you know what a pack is? It's a family. You need to open up to us. You need to open up to me." I turn away from him. I know I'm supposed to be hiding my feelings from him but I hate seeing him like this.

"I think it's time for me to go." I turn back and see Derek has already jumped out the window.

Before any kind of relationship can happen between us, he needs to pull his head out of his ass. I guess it's going to be my job to help him realize what a closed off ass he can be, and help him get over it.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it. Please let me know what you thought by reviewing. Thanks.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note:** So I actually went back and reread _From Another Angle_ and I noticed that there are a few mistakes in regards to continuity, but I said that this could be a standalone and I guess that I'm sticking with that. I hope you like this chapter. There are some nice Sterek scenes.

**Chapter 11**

Stiles POV

What the hell is up with Derek? Seriously? After spending hour with him last night I still feel like I don't know anything about him. The only thing I learned is that he has a few friends in neighboring packs. I tried to get him to open up a bit but that was definitely a dead end.

Maybe trying to get him to talk isn't going to work. I guess to be honest I should've assumed that. I mean it is Derek, he isn't exactly known for using his words. But I thought that I might be able to get something out of him. Maybe I need to think of something we can bond over.

A plan jumped into my mind then. I grabbed my Laptop and other crap and headed over to Derek's place. He wasn't living in that loft anymore. Apparently people began complaining about what appeared to be a wild animal living on the top floor and then there were some complaints about water damage. Let's just say that it was easier for him to just move out than deal with all those complications. So he's back living in his house. The county had given him permission to rebuild his house, but he had yet to start doing anything.

Once I'm parked in front of his house I jump out and yelled "Yo, Derek! You here?" There was no point in trying to be discreet; he would know I'm coming when I turned off the highway.

He walks out of the house wearing only a pair of jeans. Why is that he seems to always be wearing clothes that literally send my mind into the dirtiest of places. I mean seriously, he must have just been working out. There is just the right amount of sweat on his chest. His hair still looked like he hadn't done anything to it since he woke up. He just looked fricken hot.

I knew I was zoning out and was pulled from my thoughts by his voice. "What are you doing here?"

I had to register what he was saying before responding. "Um…I thought I'd come and hang out. Right now we're just waiting for your contacts to get back with you. Oh wait, did you call them or hear back yet?"

"I left voicemails with them. I'm going to call them back later on. You didn't answer my question, why are you here?"

"Technically I did. I told you I came to hang out."

In typical Derek fashion, he glared at me. "Stiles, seriously, what are you doing here?"

I pulled out my laptop, bringing it up to show him. "Since you never seem to understand the tv and movie references I make, I thought we might just hang out and watch some Netflix. We never really just hang out, you and I. I think that it might be good for us to get to know each other a bit better."

"And why is that?"

"Because…" I thought over our conversation from the night before and finally figured out what I was going to say. "Because of what we talked about last night. I told you that the pack is a family and that we need to be close, but you constantly keep yourself distanced from us. I get that you are more focused on keeping us safe, but you also need to feel comfortable with us."

"And having a movie marathon will help?"

"Hell yeah it will. You'll finally be able to understand us when we make these references. By the way, how the hell do you not know anything about pop culture? Do you even watch movies or TV?"

"No. I read. You ever heard of that. It's from these things called books. They have stories in them."

"Hahaha. Shut up," He flashed his eyes at me, "Or don't. Your choice. But seriously, are we going to have a movie marathon?"

"Fine."

"Awesome. So I was thinking we start with the broadest movie first, the Avengers. It has a lot of the more popular Marvel characters: Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. Plus this dude Coulson. Coulson is bad ass. He's just a normal agent, but he has the attitude of a hero."

"Fine, let's watch this."

We head into the house and I set up my laptop. "I'm assuming you don't have wifi here?"

"Of course I have wifi in my rundown, burnt up house." He responded with so much sarcasm it actually made me well up with pride.

"Ok, good thing I have a mobile hotspot." I turn it on and start the movie. "Get ready for awesomeness."

We sit and watch the movie. I constantly have to answer Derek's questions about everything. I guess it may have not been the best idea to start with a movie that has established storylines from other movies, but I thought that it was a good idea at the time. He seems to really be enjoying it, once you get past the look of confusion on his face. It's nice to just hang out with him doing something normal. No researching monsters or chasing witches. Just hanging out and watching movies.

Once the movie is done I close my laptop and turn towards Derek. "So what did you think? Was it awesome or what?"

"It was good."

"Good? Just good? You just watched over 2 hours of action and all you thought was good? I guess it's going to take more than one movie to convert you to the world of media. But don't worry, I will help you through it." I smile over at him.

"You're going to help me? Help me with what?"

"Your lack of pop culture knowledge. You're the one that created a pack full of teenagers. If you want to connect with us, you are going to have to understand what we are talking about." I look over at him and he has a slight annoyed look on his face. "You aren't getting out of this. This is something that must be done."

"Why do you care so much about this? About movies?"

"I have always been a fan of movies and all things nerdy, which by the way being a nerd is awesome, but it has definitely been increased over the last year." I took a deep breath and continued on, "Movies are an escape for me. It's a way for me to forget about the crappy life that I have now and step into another world." He looks over at me with a concerned look, but I continue on. "With all the supernatural crap that is around us, it's nice to watch a show where it is someone else's problem. Somewhere where there are superheroes that fly in and save the day or two brothers with a shot gun full of salt. Movies give me an escape."

He looks down again and then speaks, "It's the same of me and books."

"What?"

"There's this quote that I read once, 'Books are a portal to another world.' I don't know who wrote it but it kind of stuck with me. When I read I step out of this world and into another. It's a good way to relax. A way for me to forget about all my responsibilities and worries for the pack, just for a little while."

"I guess we have something in common. Though the medium may be different, we both look for ways to step out of our world and into another."

"Yea, I guess."

I look at him and see that he looks a bit sad. I want to lean over and rest my hand on his shoulder, in a way that will hopefully show him that I understand what he goes through.

Just as I begin to move towards him, his phone goes off, the sound causing both of us to jump. He looks down at the number and back at me. "It's the Xavier pack." He takes a breath and answers the phone. All I can do is wait to find out what they tell Derek, but by the look on Derek's face, it doesn't look good.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I hope you liked this chapter. It had a bit more Sterek interaction. Hopefully I can get another chapter out by the end of the weekend. Please review to let me know what you think. Thanks for reading.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note:** Sorry this took so long for me to post. School is kicking my butt and I didn't have time to write. I hope you like this chapter. Thanks for reading.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 12**

Stiles POV

You know that awkward moment when you're hanging out with someone and they're on the phone with someone else? Yeah, kinda in that moment right now. And guess what? It's awkward as hell. I'm sitting on the couch watching as Derek paces back and forth talking to the Alpha of Xavier pack. The more he talks the more concerned he appears. The fact that he's been talking with someone for 5 minutes tells you that there is reason to be concerned. In all the time I've known Derek, the longest conversation he's ever had was when he was being tortured. Even then he didn't say much.

I hear Derek end his conversation and I'm standing up and walking towards him. "What did he say? Have they heard about this pack? Were they hit? Do they know where they're headed? Wait, are all of them alive?"

"Stiles!" Derek cut me off. "Shut up. I can't handle your constant talking right now."

"Ok, sorry. But can you at least tell me what he said?"

"I'd rather wait until the rest of the pack is here." With that Derek turned and walked out of the room, calling Scott to have him pass on the message of an emergency pack meeting at Derek's place.

I walk over to Derek and drag him back into the living room. "Derek, Are they ok? I know they were your friends."

"Stiles, not now. I don't want to hear your voice. For once can you just shut up and wait until everyone else is here?"

Great, Mr. Sourwolf is back. "Fine, whatever. I just wanted to help you out. But whatever, go be a freaking asshole while we wait."

Derek and I were having such a great time, bonding over movies. I finally thought I was about to get him to open up about himself. I got him to open up a bit, he did share why he was such a fan of books, but that is as far as we had the chance to go before that call. I know that the call couldn't have been good. He went from 0 to Asshole in a matter of minutes. I really hope that he doesn't get stuck in that ridiculous "asshole" state forever. When we were hanging out earlier I could see his wall slowly coming down. It looks like asshole is his barricade. Great.

After 10 minutes, the first of the pack started to show up. Isaac and Cora were the first ones to come back, followed shortly after by Peter and Lydia. Scott and Allison showed up last, but they tend to do that whenever they are together. It takes them a while to pull themselves out of that annoying "couple cloud."

Scott was the first one to speak up. "So Derek, why did you call us? Is this about that rogue pack?"

"Yea, Stiles and I were talking last night and we think we found the path the other pack is taking."

"Hold up," Lydia interrupted, "You two were talking last night? Where exactly did this happen?"

"Why does where matter?" I asked.

"Honey, the details always matter. So come on." She asked with that really annoying face. The one that said she wasn't going to let it go until we caved. "Fine, it was in my room. Derek continue."

Derek let out a short growl, apparently upset about the little interruption. "I noticed that one of the packs that my family used to be friends with was between us and the rogue pack."

"Which pack is this?" Peter asked.

"The Xavier pack." Peter nodded in acknowledgement. "I left a message last night with their Alpha Mark, and he called me back half an hour ago."

"What did he say?" Isaac said.

"His pack was hit by this pack. They were given the same warning but they didn't find any police reports that supported what they heard, so they ignored it."

"I guess they don't have my researching skills." Derek looked over with a glare. "Sorry, too soon. Continue."

"His pack had 5 including himself and his mate. They were hit by a pack of 7. It was a surprise attack, before they were able to fight 2 of them were already dead. They were able to kill 3 of the other pack, but by the end of the battle only he and his mate survived. They escaped their territory."

"Holy Crap!" I can't even apologize for that one slipping out. That whole situation sounded horrible.

"So the rogue pack is down to 4 wolves? That puts the odds in our favor." Scott says.

"Not Really."

I had to stop him there. "What do you mean not really? I'm pretty sure we can take on 4 wolves. We've done it before."

"The pack isn't going to stay at 4 for long."

"What does that mean?" Isaac asked.

"According to the Mark, the Alpha likes to keep his pack at 7. He overheard the Alpha saying they needed to replace those that were lost quickly. It sounded like they were continuing on to their next target. Considering the path they're taking, it looks like they're headed to Beacon Hills."

"So we'll still have one on them. It's 8 to 7, not the best odds but we're still one stronger."

"No. I'm not going to let you and Lydia join us. Allison can because she's a trained hunter. Do you think you can get your Dad and the other hunters to help us?"

"I'm sure they will. They will definitely want to take out this rogue pack, too many lives have been lost."

"Wait," I jumped up getting everyone's attention, "can we go back to the whole 'No Stiles or Lydia' bit. You can't keep us away. We are members of this pack too. We should be there to help."

"Stiles! I'm not going to have you two there. All we need is for one of you guys to get hurt. Inevitably it will distract one of us and we'll get hurt ourselves."

"Are you freaking kidding me?! Do you know how many times I have saved all your asses?!"

"That doesn't matter." He moved until he was standing right in front of me. "This discussion is over." His eyes flashed red, displaying his anger.

"For now it is" I muttered, but seeing as how I was surrounded by werewolves, they were able to hear me clearly.

Derek growled in annoyance. "Let's keep up our patrols. Tomorrow we'll meet here at 4pm. Allison, see if you can get your Dad to join you. We'll need to set up some strategy to put the odds in our favor. That's it for now. Isaac and Cora, go start your patrol shift."

With that everyone left the house, but I stayed, determined to get Derek to realize that I can be an asset.

"Stiles, I said that we're done talking. Go home."

"No. We are going to talk about what you said."

"Stiles, I told you the discussion was over. It's final."

"No, it's not." He turned, his eyes glowing red. "Don't pull those 'Alpha Eyes' on me. I'm not one of your betas. I don't have to do what you say. Now let me speak." His glare remained trained on me, but I had to keep going. "I may not be a beta but I'm a part of this pack. I have saved all your asses on more than one occasion. I can actually name one of those occasions right now, or do you forget those freaking witches from two weeks ago?! I saved this pack. You should trust me enough to know that I can handle myself."

"I don't care what you've done in the past. You're not a fighter. You're the researcher. You're the one that we go to for answers, not for a fight. You don't belong out there with us."

"You've seen what I can do. You know that I am not some pathetic, desk worker. Can't you trust me when I say that I can help you?"

"I can't trust you. You're human. You can't heal. You aren't as strong or fast. You can't tell me that you can help us because it will be too easy for you to be killed. I can't trust you to be safe because the odds are you won't."

I know that Derek was trying to show some form of caring for me, but all I could focus on was the fact that he said he didn't trust me because I was human. I know that he said more than just that, but that is the statement that stood out.

"So you don't want to deal with the risk of having a human around?"

"It's more than just that. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I think you're right. I should be going." I turned and walked out the house, heading toward my jeep. What Derek said hurt. I know that he cares about me, but he can't trust me to help the pack and be an asset. I guess I'll just have to prove it to him then.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note: **So this chapter was kinda long, but I had to make up for taking so long to write it. I have a long weekend so I will hopefully get to post another chapter sometime soon. Thanks for reading. Please Review.


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note:** So this is kind of a filler chapter. Plus it's switching perspective. It's going to be kind of short but I hope you like it. Thank you for reading.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 13**

Derek POV

The meeting last night went pretty smooth, besides Stiles freaking out towards the end. I don't understand why he thinks he can keep up with the pack. He might be a part of the pack, but he is not a werewolf. If one of us gets injured it will take us a few hours to heal, it would take him days. It's dangerous for him. Why doesn't he just learn to leave things like this up to us?

In the distance I can hear someone running towards the place. I go outside prepared to attack them, but as they grow closer I can tell that it is Scott that is coming. He is soon there standing in the clearing.

"What are you doing here? Do you have something to report?"

"No, my shift on patrol was pretty boring. Nothing to report."

"Then why are you here? We're not going to be meeting here for another 6 hours."

"We need to talk about something. It's about what happened at the pack meeting last night."

"I'm not changing my mind. Stiles and Lydia are going to stay out of the fight. They're human and vulnerable. They don't heal like us."

"I'm not disagreeing with you. I just want to explain something to you." He stops to run his hands through his hair. I can feel way he was having difficulty putting the next words together.

"What?"

"Do you know what you did to Stiles last night? You made him feel like he was a weak part of the pack."

"He's not a wolf. He's not as strong as us."

"That's not what I meant by weak. You made him feel like you don't think he can handle being in the pack. Like he can't do anything to help. Pretty much, you challenged him to prove to you that he is capable of fighting."

"What do you think he is going to do?"

"He's going to find a way to help us one way or another. I think you need to go and see him. Try to convince him that you need him to help the pack in some other way. Some way that keeps him out of the fight, but feeling like he is actually helping."

"Any ideas?"

"Hey you're the Alpha, you're the one that needs to come up with that. I'm just Stiles' best friend. I know what he's thinking, that's why I knew I needed to come here and give you a heads up. After the meeting today, talk to him and convince him to do something else."

"Fine, whatever. Why doesn't he realize that he can be hurt so easily?"

"Because he's a human that runs with wolves. His idea of reality has been shifted." He looks like he's going to leave, but something stops him. He turns to me and looks me square in the eye. "Why are you so protective of him? You would've never cared about him getting hurt a year ago."

I glared at him and took a few steps forward. "You think I don't care about the safety of my pack? You think I'd be ok with one of them being hurt or killed?"

"That isn't what I meant. Before you were worried that something would happen, but if Stiles insisted, you would let him come. You'd complain that he'd slow us down, but he would be right there with us. You're becoming more protective of him, why is that?"

"What are you talking about? I treat Stiles the same as everyone else in my pack. I just have to be more protective of my human members since they are so fragile."

"Really? I could've sworn that you were more protective of Stiles than you are of Lydia, and Lydia is the one that is mostly terrifying when you speak to her, not when you're about to fight her. Don't tell her I said that, her glares give yours a run for its money."

"I still don't know what you mean, but I'll think about talking to Stiles about giving him a different role in the fight."

"Ok, sounds good. I'm going to go and meet up with Stiles before the meeting. See you in a few hours." With that he turns and runs in the direction of Stiles' house.

I don't know what Scott was talking about. I admit that I didn't treat Stiles all that great in the beginning, but now I rely on his researching skills to help the pack. Stiles has proven that he can be an asset in a battle, but he has also been injured in many fights. I have to protect him, I don't want to see him hurt. Why is that such a bad thing?

I went back in the house and tried to figure out some way to keep Stiles from the fight. Scott was right about one thing. Stiles is an idiot and he will find some way to ignore me to be at that fight. I have to think of some way to keep him from doing something stupid and getting himself hurt.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** So I hoped you like that. I had planned from the beginning for the story to start off with only Stiles POV, but I feel like in order to get the full experience I'm going to have to switch perspectives every once in a while. This chapter was short, sorry for that, but thanks for reading. Please favorite, follow and/or review.


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note:** I'm sorry it took me so long to get this posted. School is kicking my ass. I hope you like this chapter. Thank you for reading

oooooooooo

**Chapter 14**

What the hell? How can Derek think that I'm not an asset? Does he not remember me holding him up for 2 fricken hours in 8 feet of water while a Kanima was circling us? If he doesn't think that I can help, then he is a bigger idiot than I thought.

He might think that he can keep me from the fight, but he's wrong. I'm going to that meeting and I'm going to figure out their plan. They won't be able to stop me. If they think I'm just going to stay in my room and watch movies, that' bullshit. I can't just sit by when everyone I care about is out there risking their lives.

I turned when I heard the sound of someone jumping through the window. Thinking it was Derek, I turned ready to rip him a new one. "What the f-," I had to stop myself, it wasn't Derek that jumped through the window but Scott. "Hey, Scott. Sorry I didn't realize it was you. I thought it was Derek. What are you doing here? The meeting isn't for a few hours."

"What? I can't come by and hang out with my best friend. I'm hurt." He tried to feign hurt, but I could see past it. I could tell that there was something that he wanted to talk to me about.

"First of all, you're always welcome to hang out with the greatest person you have had the pleasure of knowing." He shoved me slightly, laughing at my (honest) joke. "Secondly, I know you and I know that you didn't just come here to hang out. What is it that you want to talk to me about?"

"I know you don't want to hear this, but I agree with Derek. You shouldn't be there when we face this pack. It's too dangerous."

I couldn't help my reaction. I was pissed. "What the hell, dude? How can you say that? You know that I'm not some weak human. I know how to kick werewolf ass. I'm not afraid to demonstrate on you right now, if you need any proof."

"I know you're not weak. I'm just saying that we're going to be facing a pack that knows how and has experience killing whole packs of wolves. They're going to be more skilled than anyone we've ever faced."

"Which is exactly why you're going to need all the help you can get. I can help you guys. Why don't you guys trust me?"

"We do trust you." He had to stop himself and take a deep breath. It was obvious that this argument was starting to take a toll on his control. "I don't want you to get hurt. You're my brother. If something were to happen to you, it would devastate me. Derek would be devastated as well. He doesn't want to lose you either."

"Derek? How do you know what he is thinking? For all we know he just doesn't want some weak human ruining his plans. He's just worried that I'm going to get in the way and get one of his precious betas hurt."

"That's not true."

"How would you know?"

I looked like he was about to say something but he stopped himself. "I looked back over the past few months and I've noticed something. Derek is protective of you, more than he is of anyone else in the pack. He might claim that it is because he needs to protect you because you're human, but if that were the case then he would be just as protective of Lydia. We both know that isn't the case."

"What are you trying to say?"

"I think that Derek may care for you, and by 'care' I mean more than just an Alpha for a pack mate."

"Are you freaking kidding me? We've both established that nothing is going to happen. He's straight, do we need to look back at his track record? He loves to date psycho chicks. On top of that, why can't he care about me and keep me safe."

"Really? You just found out that Derek might have feelings for you and this is how you react? I thought you'd be happy."

"Why would I be happy about something that is never going to happen? Seriously Scott? I think I need to tell you what he said to me after the meeting."

"What did he say that is so bad that you can't open your eyes to what I am saying?"

"He told me he couldn't trust me because I was a human. He might accept me as a member of his pack, but he doesn't trust me. He can't trust that I can be an asset, he can't trust me because I'm not like him."

"I don't think that is what he meant."

"You weren't there. He meant everything he said." I stood and moved to walk out of my room and head to the kitchen. It took a few moments but Scott finally followed me.

"He might have said that, but I don't think he meant that."

"Fine, believe what you want."

The tension in the room was tangible. I felt as if I was being suffocated by it. Why did Scott feel the need to fill my mind with those thoughts? I'm perfectly fine living with my fantasies. I know that my feelings aren't going to go away anytime soon, but I now know that nothing will ever happen. You need to trust one another for a relationship to work, and it is clear that Derek didn't trust me.

Scott finally huffed and began to speak. "Enough of this awkward tension. Let's cook something up, move to the couch, and get our movie on."

"Sounds good to me." We moved around the kitchen making simple sandwiches and went into the living room to have a mini movie marathon.

Scott might be right about it being dangerous to take part in the fight, but I haven't changed my mind. I will prove to Derek that I am an asset to the team. I will show him that he was an idiot for not trusting me. Now all I have to do is listen to their plan and find a way to get there.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I promise I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible. School is kicking my ass though. Please review.


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: **I apologize for taking long writing this. School is kicking my ass. Luckily I am procrastinating writing my essay so I found the time to write this. I hope you enjoy it.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 15**

Stiles POV

Throughout mine and Scott's movie marathon, half my mind was not focusing on the awesomeness that is the Dark Knight series. I was thinking about what Scott said. Going over my conversation with Derek I realized that he told me that he didn't want to risk me getting hurt. He couldn't trust me when I said that I would be safe because the events of the past in which I got injured was even with the amount of times I came out unscathed.

I guess Derek really is thinking about my safety, but that doesn't mean that I will willingly sit by and watch as my pack takes on a group of wild werewolves. If I'm not there I'm going to have a panic attack. My mind will constantly be focusing on what might be happening and it will undoubtedly be coming up with all the worst possible outcomes.

There was only one clear solution, I was going to have to be there when the fighting took place but remain out of the actual fight. I would try to stay out of it as much as possible. If it begins to get out of hand then I will step in. I can't just sit by and watch my friends get slaughtered.

The pack meeting was going to start in about half an hour so I felt that it would probably be the right time to start heading over. I look over at Scott and see that he h is passes out leaning against the couch. When exactly had he fallen asleep? I guess I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I failed to notice. Though usually I can tell because he snores like a freaking chainsaw. This would be the time he chose to be quiet while sleeping.

I shortly thought about whacking him with a pillow to wake him up, but I have the scratch marks that show that waking a werewolf violently will only lead to pain on my part. So I chose to gently shake him awake. "Hey Scott, wake up. Pack meeting is in half an hour and we've got to go."

He groaned but eventually started to move. "Did you text Allison to see if she needs a ride?"

"No, but her Dad is supposed to be coming to the meeting so I would assume that he would be the one to drive her."

"I'll text her just in case." He whips out his phone and quickly texts Allison.

I couldn't help but laugh. "You really are whipped."

"I am not whipped, I just want to make sure that she can make it to the meeting. There is nothing wrong with being considerate."

"Sure, but that doesn't explain your automatic thoughts of Allison as you wake up. Trust me, I've seen how you are around her. You are whipped."

"Shut up," he says while shoving me playfully. I'm glad that through all this supernatural crap we can still keep our friendship as fun and joking as it was before. His phone vibrates and he checks his message. "She's catching a ride with her dad, so we don't have to worry about her."

"Really? If only someone had told you that before you texted her so we wouldn't have needed to double check. Oh wait, I did tell you that." A sly smile creeps across my face.

He glares at me. "You really are a sarcastic asshole, do you know that?"

"Of course I know, it's one of the reasons you love me. Now get off your ass and let's go."

We jump in the jeep and head over to Derek's house. I swear one of these days I'm going to force him to get that placed fixed. It is an accident waiting to happen. When we pull up I see that we are the first to arrive. Derek comes out to meet us.

"You guys are early." He greets us with.

I roll my eyes and check my watch. "Only by 20 minutes, and we seriously need to work on your greetings. Maybe you should try saying _Hello_. Try it with me _He-Ll-O_."

He glares over at me, and for some reason that glare is really turning me on. This is not the time for those thoughts, all I need is for me to get excited and Derek to smell the lust coming off of me. "Stiles, will you shut up?"

"I could but we both know that it is highly unlikely." He turns and walks into the house. I would be lying if I said that Derek's ass looked horrible in those jeans. I mean seriously, his pants fit him so perfectly, it should be illegal. I've been so focused on how I feel about Derek and being a part of the fight that I forgot about my attraction to him. I need to get it together before all the werewolves will be able to smell the arousal pouring off of me.

I sit on the couch with Scott while we wait for everyone else to show up. Scott pulls out his phone and texts someone, who I assume is Allison. The next second my phone is vibrating. I check it to see that it is from Scott. Why is he texting me when we are literally sitting half a foot from each other.

_Scott: Dude are you ok? You look like you're about to pass out_

I try to relax myself and text him back. _I forgot how attracted I am to him. I've been distracted lately by the "fighting with him" thing_

When we went to check his phone a smirk comes across his face. I wait for his text message and continue trying to calm myself down.

_Scott: Well calm down. Just talk to him. Maybe that will help you chill out._

I look over at him and he is trying to non-verbally encourage me to get up. I roll my eyes and move to talk to Derek. He's in the kitchen pouring himself a cup of coffee. How he got electricity in this place, let alone a coffee maker baffles me, but I've learned to never question things like hat.

"Any chance I can get a cup of that?" I said trying to start some sort of conversation. He reaches into the cupboard and pulls out a cup and fills it for me. "I didn't know werewolves could drink coffee. Doesn't your metabolism burn it off?"

"No, but we don't get a caffeine buzz either. It just helps me with my headaches."

"Wait, you get headaches? How is that possible?"

"We're still part-human. I get headaches when I'm under stress. Having a crazy pack coming after my pack can be a bit stressful."

"I guess I understand that." I look over at him and see his attention is squarely on his mug. "You know I hear talking about your problems can help alleviate stress. Want to talk to me?" I see Scott walk out of the living room out of the corner of my eye. It looks like he's about to take a phone call but I think he's just trying to give Derek and I some privacy.

"I don't need to talk about my problems. I just need to get rid of the threat that is looming over my pack. Talking about it isn't going to stop the pack. Talking about it isn't going to make me any less stressed. The only thing that will is killing those wolves."

I groan when he is done talking. I don't know what I expected. Of course Derek was going to be defensive. I had to try to change the conversation to one that he was comfortable with. "I understand what you are saying. I'm just trying to let you know that I am here if you need someone to talk to. I don't want you to think that you're all alone in this. You have a whole pack behind you, and you have me."

Derek looks up at me, the look in his eyes is one that I haven't seen before, at least on Derek's face. It was a look of both wonder and gratitude. I could tell that he couldn't believe what I had said but he was grateful that I had said it. That was the thing about Derek, he never was able to trust anyone and I guess him hearing that someone was there for him was something he didn't believe he deserved.

After a few moments he tore his gaze from mine and looked toward the front of the house, able to hear something that my weak human ears couldn't hear. I waited a few moments before I realized that there was a car coming up the driveway. I looked back over at Derek and his "business face" was back on. Why is it that whenever we are on the verge of having a real conversation that involves feelings something happens?

Derek moves to open the door and Chris Argent is standing there with Allison behind it. "I hear there are some wolves you need me to kill." Derek nods at him. "Good, it's been a while." He walks through the door and I know that any conversation I want to have with Derek has been put on hold. It's time for the pack meeting to begin.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** I hope you liked this chapter. Please let me know if there is anything you want me to change or do. I have my outline written out but I will always be grateful for suggestions. Please review.


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note:** I am so sorry this took so long. I was literally doing homework for the past week. I had a huge project due but now it's done. I hope you like this chapter.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 16**

Stiles POV

Chris Argent walks in followed by two other men. Derek followed them into the kitchen having them sit down around a crappy looking table, but I guess you could consider it a bit more professional than the couch in the living room.

"So what's the problem? Why did we have to come here and help you with your little mutt problem?"

Derek growled but it was obvious he was trying to control himself. "What did Allison tell you?"

"Just that a pack was coming into town and that you needed help taking them out. What's got you needing our help?"

"This pack is different. They are trying to build their territory by attacking neighboring packs. They have an alpha that is hell bent on killing every pack on the West Coast."

"Doesn't seem like a problem to me." One of Mr. Argent's hunters mumbles.

Derek growls ferociously, his eyes glowing red. "You think it's right for innocent packs to be slaughtered just for their territory. Most of those packs are peaceful, they haven't hurt anyone. When was the last time you heard of a crazed pack within 100 miles of here?"

The hunter begins to reach for his gun and Derek allows his fangs to drop. Chris and I both stand up and attempt to get between them. "Derek," I say trying to get his attention, "we need their help. You ripping their throats out won't make them in a cooperating mood."

Mr. Argent turns to his colleague, "We have a truce with this pack. My daughter is a member of this pack. They have not violated the code nor have any of the packs in the area." He turns to Derek and nods at him. "What else can you tell us?"

I look at Derek and see that he has calmed down. I move to return to my seat. "The pack has been slowly moving down the coast, they just took out the pack to the North of us. One of the packs that I know gave me some details. The Alpha keeps his pack at 7 wolves at all times. The entire pack is vicious. If they continue on their path, they should be here by tomorrow night."

"So we need a plan of attack." Chris stands and begins to pace, he looks over at Allison, "It's up to you. You're the oldest woman here."

"What are you talking about?" I couldn't help but ask.

Allison turns to me. "The Argent family has a structure. The Men are the Warriors, the Women are the Leaders. Which means that I have taken over the role of Leader. I'm the one that makes the decision."

I look at her and a smile comes across my face. "Dude, that's freaking awesome."

Allison turns to Derek, "Sorry I didn't tell you, but it's not something I was really permitted to tell you. It's Argent family tradition."

"I understand." Derek nods at her. "So do you have any ideas as to what we should do? I know that they are coming in from the North which means they will be going through the industrial district. I was thinking that we try to lead them to a trap there."

"We could probably lead them into one of the abandoned warehouses. We could use those high frequency emitters with a combination of your scents to lead them exactly where we want them."

"That sounds good."

I interrupt here. "Do other hunters use those emitters?"

Mr. Argent turns to me. "Why do you ask that?"

"Well if they had a run-in with any other hunters then they would know how hunters work. If they hear those emitters they will know they are being led into a trap." Everyone looks at me with a wide array of looks, one of them shocked. "What? Remember I'm the smart one here, well besides Lydia," I say looking over at her. "If I heard it and knew hunters used it then I would try to go away from where you're headed."

Mr. Argent nods at me, "You do have a point. No one else uses these emitters. They're my own invention. They won't know what the sound is."

"So that is how we lead them into the warehouse," Derek says bringing the attention back to him. "Where do you want to have your men positioned?"

"There is one warehouse that has an elevated platform. We'll position our best archers, including Allison, up there so they can have a clear sight. The rest of us will be near the entrance when they walk in so that we can try to knock them out before they have the chance to cause much damage."

"That sounds good. I will have Isaac and Scott on the Northern edge of town and when they hear the pack approaching they will lead the pack to us. The rest of us will be inside the warehouse ready to attack."

Chris nods in agreement. "What are you going to have the human members of the pack doing?"

I quickly turn to Derek looking at him with determination but he just glares at me. "They will be staying out of the fight."

I stand up at this. "You can't keep me from the fight. I can help. I know how to fire a gun and I'm doing better with a crossbow."

Derek's glare deepens, "You are not going to be there!" He says with a growl. "I am not going to have you there distracting us and inevitably getting yourself hurt."

"You don't know if that is going to happen. I could be beneficial to the pack."

"Or you can hurt the pack." Derek crosses his arms around his chest, his signal that he is done talking.

"This is not done." I move to sit down again.

The meeting pretty much wraps up after that. All agreeing to meet at the warehouse at 6pm tomorrow. Derek didn't even look at me for the remainder of the meeting.

The Hunters left along with the remainder of the pack. Scott looks over at me, seeing the determination between my eyes. I am determined to talk to Derek. "Hey, I'll catch a ride back with Allison. I'll talk to you later." He said as he left.

I walk over to Derek who is back in the kitchen, his back turned away from me. "Derek,"

"Don't Stiles," he cuts me off, "I don't want you there. I can't risk you getting hurt."

"I am not some fragile little kid. I can help. You know that. Not even a month ago I saved your ass from a coven of witches. I fricken shot one of them in the head. I can hold my own."

"I know you're not incompetent."

"Then why can't I help?!" I yell at him.

"Because this isn't our typical battle." He yells back. I see him calm himself before he continues, "These wolves are crazed. I don't want you or Lydia there, but maybe you can help."

"How?"

"Maybe you can be stationed on the southern edge of the industrial area. You can let us know if any of the wolves are surprising us from that direction."

"Really? That's what you want me to do?"

"You're not going to be in the battle, but this is needed. We can't be surprised from the other side, so you can help us there."

That isn't going to happen but I figured that if Derek thinks I am going to listen to him then he won't be so paranoid about where I am. "Fine, I'll do that. At least it's something."

"Thank you. Now get out of here, I've reached my Stiles annoyance capacity for the day."

"Sure, I'll see you tomorrow." I walked out of the house and headed to my jeep. Tomorrow I will be there. I don't care what Mr. Alpha says. I can't leave my pack when there is a very real chance that they will be slaughtered. I have to be there.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Sorry for taking so long. But I hoped you liked this. I will try to post a couple chapters this weekend. I have it off for once so I'll have time to work on this. Please review and Thanks for reading.


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Note:** So since it's a holiday and I am procrastinating doing my homework, I figured I'd post another chapter. It's also my way of apologizing for taking so long to post last time. I hope you like it. P.S. I got a review asking for Stiles to have some magical powers, but I like Human!Stiles. It makes him be even more badass because he doesn't need enhanced abilities to keep up with the werewolves. Now back to the story

oooooooooo

**Chapter 17**

Stiles POV

I spent the next day planning for what I was going to do. I might've told Derek that I would help Lydia survey the southern perimeter, but that is only a half truth. I do plan on going there but once I tell Lydia my plan, I will definitely make my way up to the warehouse.

I know that intervening in a werewolf battle is not the smartest decision that I have ever made, but I can't just sit idly by and hear about what happened to the pack from some other source. There are people that I really care about that are going to be fighting tonight, I don't think I sit somewhere and just hope for the best.

Do you have any idea how devastating it is going to be to find out that Scott was injured? Or Allison? Or Derek? Or Anyone? Scott is my brother. We've been best bros since forever and I don't want anything to happen to him. I still feel guilty about dragging him into this whole mess in the first place, I have to make sure he's ok.

I know that I shouldn't worry about Derek, I mean he is the Alpha, but I do. He has the horrible trait of self-loathing. He blames himself for everything bad that has ever happened. He won't think anything of being hurt in battle, as long as his pack is safe. That's where his stupidity comes in to play. He is more than willing to get himself killed for one of his pack members. I do think that that is a very admirable trait but at the same time that means that his focus is not fully on whoever he is facing, it's on the entire battle, which leads him to be in more danger. I can't risk him getting hurt. I know that these feelings I have may not lead to anything, but I still deeply care for him and I don't want to know what it will be like to hear that he didn't survive or that he was severely injured.

I have to be there, I have to protect my pack if all else fails. I won't jump into it. I plan on sitting outside the warehouse where I can have a clear line of sight so I can intervene if necessary. I am hoping that everything goes easy and they won't even need to know that I was there, but when has life ever been easy for us? If it does look like they are being overwhelmed, then I will step in. If I use the crossbow that I have, it will allow my presence to remain silenced. A gun will draw their eyes straight towards my location, but a crossbow could be fired from anywhere. Though I am more trained with a gun, it looks like tonight a crossbow will be my weapon of choice.

I'm so lost in my thoughts that I fall out of my bed at the sound of a knocking on my window. I look up to see Scott laughing at me through my window. He lifts it up and climbs in, still rocking with laughter. "Dude, you should've seen your face."

I groan and glare at him. "Haha, what do you want?"

"I'm just here to make sure that you aren't going to be doing anything stupid tonight."

Luckily, spending all my time with werewolves has led to my ability to lie without detection. "I'm not planning on doing anything tonight, besides meeting up with Lydia at the southern border of the industrial area." Not a lie. I'm going to meet up with her but then tell her my plan. After her yelling at me for 5 minutes, which we all know will happen, I will head up to the warehouse.

"What? You're meeting up with Lydia?"

"Derek didn't tell you?" Of course he didn't, Derek still has a problem with telling everyone everything. "In an attempt to keep me from coming to the fight, he has asked me to patrol the southern border with Lydia to make sure there are no wolves that are attempting a surprise attack from behind."

"Well that sounds like a good idea. But you guys are just going to let us know when you see one right? You're not going to fight them, are you?"

"No, I won't fight any werewolves that cross from the perimeter." Not a lie. "Lydia will radio if one is spotted." Also not a lie.

"Good. Want to do something while we wait? I don't have to be at the warehouse for another hour. When are you meeting up with Lydia?"

"In half an hour. I should probably start getting ready. Do you need me to give you a ride to the warehouse or anything?"

"Why? So you can figure out which warehouse we're going to be in and have an easier time following us? No thank you." I don't know if I should be shocked or not that Scott would guess my plan, but I have to pretend like I have no idea what he is talking about. Oh and crap, I guess I forgot about that whole 'knowing where the fight is' part. Oh well I guess I could always follow the sound of snarling.

"I told you. I'm meeting up with Lydia."

"Well I'm glad you're not being an idiot. I plan on catching a ride with Allison and her father. That should be an interesting car ride. A werewolf in a car full of hunters."

"Don't worry, they won't kill you, then. Maybe during the fight." I say giving him one of my best sarcastic smirks.

"Shut up, you ass. Well be safe tonight. I swear I will come find you as soon as the battle is done."

"Be safe."

He laughs at me. "I sure will, Mom." I throw my shoe at him, missing as he jumps out of the window.

I start to look around the room, trying to find my crossbow and the few arrows I have. Maybe I can run by Allison's place and pick up a few more. I could always say that I have it for protection tonight. No, she'd only say that I should use my gun since I am better with it. I guess I'll have to deal with what I've got.

Once I have everything I need together I head out of the house and go to pick up Lydia. She wasn't exactly happy about having me drive, but my jeep is a bit sturdier than her tiny car. We drove in silence until we got to where we agreed to sit and wait.

"I hate this, why do we have patrol duty again?" She complained, playing with her phone.

"Because Derek thinks that us 'weak humans' can't do anything besides get themselves hurt and/or everyone else."

"Well that is bullshit. I seem to remember knocking out a few baddies and whipping up Molotov cocktails that kills any mythical beast we've had to deal with."

"You don't have to argue with me. I definitely feel like we are an asset rather than a hinderace. Which is why I am going to ask you a huge favor?" I say with one of my best 'please' smiles.

"You want me to stay here and keep patrol so that you can go and check to make sure no one gets hurt during the fight." Ok, that was not what I was expecting.

"How did you know that I was going to say that?"

"Because you have a massive crush on Derek–"

"What? No I don't." How the hell does she know that? Maybe she is Psychic?

"Yes you do. You really think I didn't notice how you were hiding from the pack for those weeks and how when you look at Derek your eyes sometimes glaze over? You like him, I can tell."

"There's no point in me denying it, is there?"

"Nope. I understand why you want to be there. I feel the same way, but you have to understand that Derek wants you safe. He likes you too."

"What? No he doesn't!"

"Well, he doesn't realize he does, but he will eventually."

"What are you talking about?"

"Derek is really protective of you. He always pairs himself up with you."

"That's because I'm human and a member of his pack." 

"Out of the two of us, you are definitely not the weakest. If he really wanted to protect someone who needed to be protected, he would pair himself up with me. But he doesn't."

I thought it over for a second. She couldn't be right about that. Derek doesn't look at me that way, and why would he? He is older and hotter and better overall. Why would he like me?

"You're wrong. He doesn't like me. If he did, I think I would notice that."

"He doesn't know it yet. He doesn't realize that he has those feelings for you. He is hardest on himself. He thinks that he doesn't deserve anyone so he shuts off the part of his mind that associates with it. He feels the need to protect you, but he thinks it is just because you're human. But trust me, it's more than that. I can tell."

"Well, we both know that if what you say is true–"

"Which it is"

"Fine. It will never happen. But I do need to make sure that he and everyone else are safe. So can you please cover for me?"

"Sure." I turn to walk away, "but promise me that you'll be safe. I don't want to hear about you getting yourself hurt by trying to be a hero."

I turn to give a half-smile. "We both know that I'm not a hero." Before I can hear her response, I run off in the direction of the warehouses. Even if Lydia was right, nothing was going to happen between myself and Derek. Derek could never be with someone like me. It's something that I've come to accept. But I still have to be there to make sure he's safe. I have to protect my pack.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** So we're coming up on the big fight scene. I swear I will try to post it as soon as I can. I really don't want to do my homework so I may even get it up by tomorrow. Thank you so much for reading and please review.


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's Note:** So someone reviewed saying that I needed to get them together soon. Well we're almost there. Trust me, I've had this whole thing played out in my head from the very beginning. I can't wait for them to get together either. So here's one more chapter to get us closer.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 18**

Stiles POV

I slowly worked my way through all the buildings in the area. Finding the pack seemed like it was going to be nearly impossible to do, but I had to do it. I had to make it there before the fighting began or I might be too late to do any good.

Running through the area I thought about my plan again. I just needed to find a place that I can keep an eye on the fighting while remaining out of sight. That sounds like an oxymoron or something, but it's what I need to do. Hopefully I could find a randomly placed pile of crap that I can hide behind but still have a clear view. There always seems to be random piles of crap in the movies. I know that movies are not the same as real life, but I am about to witness a fight between a rogue werewolf pack and a wolf pack with the help of hunters. I think it's ok for me to rely on movies for some guidance.

I know that they said they were going to lead them in through the north side so that is where I started running towards. I hear a car coming and I jump to hide behind a dumpster. Ha, I knew that I could trust on there being random crap to hide behind. I recognized the car as being Allison's father's so I figure that it would be smart to follow him. Hopefully he wouldn't notice a teenager following him in a hopefully sneaky manner.

After a while I finally saw where everyone was headed. I couldn't find anything to hide behind, but I did notice that one of the doors to an adjacent building was open. I snuck inside and strained my ears in an attempt to hear what was being discussed. I was able to get bits and pieces of what they were saying. It seems like they were about to send Isaac and Scott out to lead the wolves in, turning on the emitters as they ran.

I looked out the doors and saw Isaac and Scott run off. Everyone else headed inside the building. The hunters were already equipped so they turned away from their cars. I figured that they wouldn't notice if someone was sitting inside of them while they were busy. I ran there and found that one of the SUVs was empty. This was the perfect place to hide while keeping an eye on everything. Who needs random crap to hide behind when you can do it from within the comfort of a giant SUV?

For about 15 minutes there was nothing to do besides look in on Derek as he was talking to Mr. Argent. It looks like they were formulating some kind of plan, but I could no longer hear anything that was going on outside.

I was just starting to reach a state of catatonic boredom when a howl caught my attention. I knew that howl anywhere; it had to have been Scott, which means the fight was headed towards them.

A couple minutes later I see figures emerge from the woods, all of them running on all fours. Scott and Isaac were being chased by a large pack of wolves. I did a quick count and saw 7 wolves, which, if our intel was correct, meant that the entire pack was coming to the fight. There was no need to cover the southern border, but I'm pretty sure Derek knew that.

The second the wolves enter the warehouse they are pelted with arrows. Many are hit right away, but some realized the danger and were able to dodge them. Two headed up to where the hunters were perched above. Knowing that was where Allison was, I was worried, but she's always been kick-ass so I figured that there was no point to worry.

I turned my attention back to the main fight. I saw there were 3 bodies on the floor already, 2 wolves and 1 hunter. Just as I went to look for Derek, another two bodies fell. One was a hunter, the other a wolf. It was the wolf that stood up. I really hope that wasn't Allison. I know it seems like I'm more focused on Derek or Scott being hurt, but I don't want anyone else that I care about getting hurt either. They're all my pack.

I looked around and noticed that the numbers were slowly moving into the other pack. Scott and Isaac were taking on two wolves, working together to take them out. The hunters were focusing on two more. Cora and Peter were working on one. Derek was by himself fighting the Alpha. My pack was outnumbered.

Everyone was busy fighting, then something caught my attention that had me shuttering. One of the wolves was missing. The pack was so busy fighting their own battles, they didn't have time to keep count as to what was going on. I had to act. They were outnumbered as it was, but now they were unaware of just how outnumbered they were.

I slowly moved out of the car and pulled the handheld crossbow out that I brought with me. I lined up to fire at one of the wolves facing the hunters and fired. I hit it right in the chest and it fell to the floor. The hunters looked around quickly to see where the shot was fired from, but quickly needed to focus their attention back on the fight.

I didn't have time to celebrate because just then the missing wolf began to approach Derek from behind. Before I knew what was happening, I found myself running into the warehouse firing at the wolf, taking it down quickly. Derek turned to me and looked pissed, but quickly kicked the alpha while turning to slice through the wolf that I hit. I turned and fired at the wolf fighting Peter and Cora, stopping it just enough so that Peter could make the final blow.

I saw that I had helped turn the odds in our favor. I felt as if I had just proven my argument that I am more of an asset than a hindrance.

"STILES!" I hear Derek scream my name. I was just about to turn to him when a blinding white pain shoots through my back. My breath catches in my chest and I feel the strength in my legs dissipate. My legs collapse and I feel myself falling towards the ground. The last thing I think about right before I pass out is that Derek will never let me live this down.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** Dun Dun Dun! Muahaha. I hope you liked this chapter. I'm going to be honest, I prefer chapters with more dialect, but he can't really be talking when he's trying to be all stealthy. I will post the next chapter soon. At least I hope I will be able to. Please Review :)


	19. Chapter 19

**Author's Note:** So this chapter has a POV switch. Just thought I'd give you a heads up. Plus it also goes back to before the fight since it is in Derek's POV. Hope you guys like it.

oooooooooo

**Chapter 19**

Derek POV

We're as ready as we could possibly be. We knew the numbers that we would be facing and had the support of the hunters to help even out the odds. I don't like having to resort to working with them, but if it means keeping my pack safe, I'm willing to look past that. They had the numbers and the weapons to help take out the other pack with the minimalist of damage.

We set up our plan last night and unfortunately Stiles was there. It might've been easier to keep him out of the fight if he had no idea what was going on, but he's pack and it was his right to participate. I don't want him directly involved though. I told him to protect the southern border with Lydia. The odds of something happening there are practically non-existent but it gets him out of the way. Even if he thinks he can sneak off I made sure to put off choosing the location until I could send it to only those that needed it. Hopefully he realizes how dangerous this is and stays away.

Stiles can really be infuriating. He never listens to me, he is always getting himself stuck in stupid situations, and he is always getting himself hurt. I know that he has a bigger positive impact than negative in the pack, but I am always worried that something will happen. He's just human. If he gets hurt it takes him days or weeks to heal, while it only takes us minutes or hours.

I wish he would just realize that he can get hurt. I don't want to be the one that has to tell his dad that Stiles was hurt or worse killed. I don't want to see Stiles get hurt at all.

I need to get Stiles out of my head. Why the hell am I thinking of him at all? I need to focus on the battle. Tonight isn't going to be easy. This other pack is vicious. We're going to have our work cut out for us.

We meet up with the Hunters at a warehouse that is mostly empty; the one that they had decided would give their men a better tactile advantage.

Chris Argent steps out of the SUV and moves towards me. I turn to him, "So what plan do you have?"

He looks down at his weapon as he inspects it. "Allison and Jeff will go up to the elevated platform and be our archers. They can fire down at the wolves when they first enter the warehouse. It will be a surprise attack. The rest of us will stand inside the doors to help with the ambush."

"Scott and Isaac are going to lead them in. Do you have those emitters?"

"Yea," he motions to one of his hunters who steps forward with a box. He opens it up and I see the familiar tools. He hands them over to Isaac and Scott. "These should help lead the wolves straight here. You just need to place them when you run out to meet them."

Scott nods and turns towards me. "What do you want us to do when we get them on our trail?"

"Just lead them here. Nothing fancy. I don't want you two getting yourselves hurt. Just get them on your trail and get them here." I turn to face everyone. "This pack is going to be out for blood. Their goal is to kill all of us and take our territory. They will have a few recently turned wolves so those are the ones that you want to take out quickly. Leave the Alpha for me. I'll take that one out."

Chris steps forward laughing. "I think we can handle a pack of wolves. This is going to be fun."

"Whatever. Scott, Isaac, I think it's time you guys head out. Howl when they are on your trail. Hunters, go to your positions. We don't know how long it will take for them to get here once the howl sounds. Rather be set early than late."

Everyone went to their positions and all we could do was wait. Part of me was thinking about Stiles. I really hope he was being smart and kept out of this fight. Part of me knows that hoping for that is foolish, but I kept the location of the warehouse secret for him so hopefully by the time he figures out where we are the fight will be done.

The howl sounded and I had to pull myself out of my thoughts and focus back in on the fight. Scott and Isaac's forms came out of the woods and I could see that there were definitely 7 wolves, which was what we were told. Once the wolves entered warehouse they were ambushed by the hunters but that only took a few off guard, and only knocking 2 unconscious. Once the wolves got past the initial shock, the fighting became too confusing and I just had to find the Alpha, lucky for me he wasn't too difficult to find.

He charged right at me and attempted to slice me across my stomach, but I was able to move out of the way in time. I attempted a similar move, attempting to slice him through the chest but he moved just as quickly. We were both evenly matched. With every move that he made, I dodged and countered. It was evenly matched.

I was about to get a hard hit when someone screaming caught my attention. I see Stiles storm into the warehouse screaming. He takes out a wolf that was approaching me from behind. I turn to glare at him before kicking the alpha in the chest causing him to be knocked down. I quickly turned to the wolf that Stiles shot and sliced him, killing him almost instantly. I look over at Stiles and he is firing at another wolf, showing that he is an asset. I guess I should've trusted him when said he could help out.

I turn back to the Alpha that I was facing and saw that he wasn't there. I turn around to look for him and see him headed directly for Stiles. I barely have time to yell out "STILES!" before the Alpha has his claws slicing Stiles across the back.

oooooooooo

**Author's Note:** So I ended it in the same spot, but don't worry. The next chapter will be up soon. And since Stiles is currently unconscious, it will be in Derek's POV. Please Review to let me know what you think. Thanks for reading.


End file.
